What I Don't Like About You
by Trombe
Summary: A prince struggles to change his destiny. An unforgiving waterbender tries to see past the betrayal. Fate has decreed them to be enemies from the start but the heart cares not for the laws of the universe. AU ZUTARA starting from the Boiling Rock.
1. Chapter 1:Acclimation

Author's note: **My very first Zutara fic. Be nice now... I'm in thin ice here, considering I'm new to the whole Zutara ship. Hopefully I didn't do too badly here.**

**Read, review, and enjoy. -trombe**

_and, here to help is trombe's constant annoyance - oops, i mean support! - artsyelric! hooray! _**(more like the hack in my cough 'ahem' - trombe)**_ so in case you didn't know, this is a co-write. trombe is kinda_ _similar to Zuko, and i've been told i'm pretty like katara (plus trombe's and my friendship survives based on the love/hate thing, ahhh! TT...TT), so hopefully we'll write it okay. at first when he proposed writing this, i was all... ehh... but read his zuko! XDDD it gives me shivers 'squeals!' but then i read his katara, and i was like, boy! move! so here we go, trombe is zuko, and i'll be your lovely, grudge-baring katara, and we will try to have some fun!_

_we wanna keep it a bit cannon, starting after the firebending masters episode, but it's going to go off a little (since zutara currently isn't cannon - go kataang!). let us know if you have fun ideas, suggestions to keep us on character, or anything else! thanks! - artsyelric  
_

DISCLAIMER: No, we do not own Avatar. Duh. (If we did, it would come out much faster)

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 1: Acclimation  
**

* * *

Cold.

No one told the exiled prince that doing the right thing could feel this cold. And yet he felt no moral ambiguity, not like the time in the crystal caverns beneath the great city of Ba Sing Sei. No dragon, prophetic or otherwise can tell him that he wasn't doing the right thing. He was helping the Avatar, the last known hope in the world, restore the balance that was lost a hundred years ago.

To do the right thing. That was enough. Wasn't it?

Well, that Waterbender girl sure wasn't making his redemption any easier.

In fact, most everyone in the Avatar's posse didn't seem to trust him all that well, a fact he couldn't blame on them. He wouldn't trust himself either, after all he had done. That goofy warrior seemed friendly enough, but Zuko noticed how much more cautious and wary he was whenever the prince was around. A family trait no doubt, he decided. As for the blind girl garbed in green, well, Zuko wouldn't pass anything in front of her. She seemed to be able to read his emotions every time, like an open book. And that meant he showed vulnerability, a vulnerability she gladly took advantage of as she called him all kinds of nicknames. The fire prince scoffed. And he'd thought Zuzu was bad enough. The other earthbender... Haru was it? ...Well, he couldn't tell enough what he thought of him, but they had as little interactions as possible. The boy in the wheelchair and the small warrior were eager enough to greet him, but never tried to go beyond more than that.

It was official.

Everyone hated him.

Zuko sighed as he rolled around his sleeping mat.

It was no surprise they hated him. He hated himself.

He looked around his dark quarters and listened to the quiet breeze that blew gently through the temple. Everyone was breathing peacefully, fast asleep, enjoying the comfort and relaxation that slumber brought.

How he envied them.

The fire prince had enough self loathing to do, he didn't need to be cranky too. Yet try as he might, his piercing golden eyes would not cooperate with him as his mind continued to drift, and the mismatched set continued glinting as he looked around.

Finally he couldn't take it anymore and got up. If he was not tired enough to sleep, then he was not tired enough at all. Perhaps a stroll or midnight walk would clear him of his restlessness.

Yet the more he walked, the more he regretted getting up from his room. He never really had time to take a good long look at their current base. Once he would have called the western air temple beautiful. An architectural wonder, with its unique way of building the temple beneath a cliff overlooking the vast sky. It must have been a marvel when Air Nomads still walked its halls.

Now, only their ghosts remained. The temple was charred, broken, and run down. All done by the hands of his fellow country men. By the Fire Nation.

Zuko was disgusted at the thought. _For the greater good_, they had called it. Did the peaceful air monks and nuns know that as they came to the defense of their homes? Did they see the greater good they were being sacrificed to as they struggled pointlessly against metallic behemoths that would not be stopped? The wind herself must have offered them no solace as they fell, their bodies burning afterwards, never knowing the reason for their demise.

Not for the first time, Zuko felt the shame of being born a prince of such a misguided nation.

He would not let that happen again. Not while he still could breathe. The fire nation was his home - beautiful, proud and strong. But Zuko didn't feel any pride in it now. Now he knew. Something must change. Someone must grow.

The Avatar had to return balance to the world. He fully realized that when he confronted the firebending masters, the dragons of old.

After some thought, the once exiled prince realized that not being liked by the Avatar's friends seemed so trivial a problem when he focused on the bigger picture. He wasn't here to make friends. He was here to help the Avatar realize his full potential and to teach him firebending.

One way or another, that waterbending girl was going to have to get used to the idea.

* * *

Katara felt relaxed and calm as she bent the water from the fountain and enjoyed a nice warm bath. The day had been long and tiring. Cooking and cleaning, feeding Appa, washing up Toph, etc. She felt like a mother of a few very hungry and mischievous boys, and one very dirty daughter.

As she lay out under the tranquil moon, she reflected that it was nice to have a moment to herself. She combed her undone hair as she hummed a peaceful melody. Her tanned skin along with her pale blue eyes gave the impression that she was some benevolent water spirit in disguise. _Ugh, _she winced as her fingers caught in her thick locks, _not with these tangles._

Katara felt very at home living outdoors. She had grown up being one with the frozen tundra, and lived her life for some time off Appa's back, but she had also seen more splendor than she had ever dreamed possible back in her small water village, and every once in a while she found herself longing for the soaps and perfumes that made her hair so much more manageable. It wasn't vanity, she told herself; even Toph, for all she claimed to be well over the pampered society life, had admitted to missing shampoo. _Maybe I should wear it up,_ Katara considered, noticing how much longer it was becoming.

Cutting it short like Suki's was totally out of the question. Not that Suki's wasn't lovely, but Katara remembered her mother's long hair from when she was a child - it was one of the few things she did remember of the woman her birthed her. Because of that, Katara had always thought long hair was the most beautiful on waterbenders, and she would never cut it short like Suki's.

It wasn't that she felt like competing now that there were other girls around. It was actually the men that had her rilled up. In fact, she'd felt all out of sorts since Aang had... well, since he'd left the submarines before the invasion. She'd tried to talk to him about it once or twice since, but how could she talk to him when she couldn't even say it to herself?

_This is ridiculous, _she chided herself. _He kissed you - at least say it in your own mind._

The problem was, she was too confused about everything. Aang was just a part of it. A big part, she amended. And having Zuko walking around, looking down his nose at everything didn't help! It was no wonder she wanted to primp, what with Aang and Haru there, and that spoiled palace brat eying her like some kind of dangerous monster all the time...

_I'm not sporting fangs! _she growled inwardly, remembering the guarded look he always gave her.

She realized she was ringing her hair too hard, and tried to relax, letting more warm water into her bath, and soaking peacefully into her element, letting the soothing feel of the warm water envelope her and calm her.

But for every moment she had dared to relax and drop her guard came the thought of a certain firebender who slept near her chambers and made her tense up. She sighed. And she was feeling so good too._ It**'**s his fault. It has to be._

Trusting him. What was everyone thinking? What was Aang thinking?

No. She would not make that same mistake _twice_. While she might be tolerating his presence for Aang's sake, Zuko - she despised that name - was nowhere near being forgiven. Actually, she pondered if ever he _could_ be forgiven.

Betrayal was a sin which, in her opinion, had no redemption. Trust is a mutual understanding between people who have agreed on a solemn unspoken vow. While it is one of the strongest bonds in the world, once broken, it can never be repaired fully. And it didn't help Zuko's case that the person it had hurt most was Aang.

Yet deep in the recesses of her mind a small whisper of a voice sounded to her. _His betrayal did not hurt just the Avatar... it hurt you as well... _

Katara quickly dismissed the small voice with her own logical conclusions. Of course it had hurt her! Here she was giving him the benefit of the doubt, thinking for a fraction of a second that maybe, just maybe he was human too. That he was a product of an uncaring father who lived under the shadow of a twisted prodigy of a sister. That for all he had done chasing the Avatar, there was something more noble and just in the young prince. But she'd been down that road with him before. The price she had paid for her trust was the death of the Avatar, and almost the entire world.

_Why aren't you saying anything? You once said you thought we could be friends... _Zuko's words to Aang would not leave her head.

_...You know I have good in me..._

_Liar! _she fumed._ He is such a liar!_ The gentle water stirred a bit violently, as ripples began to grew, reacting to the turmoil within the waterbender. She caught herself in time to silence the growing ripples.

Katara sighed and tried to calm herself. How could he make her tremble so much with anger? It was like his constant bad mood was contagious! She'd surprised and scared herself the other day with the depth of her frustration. She remembered the parting words she had told the fire prince on the night he was accepted. _If ever you do anything to hurt Aang... You won't have to worry about your destiny anymore. Cause I'll end it there and then. Permanently._

Katara had never wanted to end a life before but she came to a shocking conclusion that she meant what she had said. Aang was becoming - had become that important to her. In comparison to him, Zuko was nothing.

But it was hurtful to feel this way. Everything about Zuko hurt her.

_Why don't you get off your high horse, Madam fussy breaches, and take Zuko for what he is now? Some poor sap who's trying to do what _you_ always wanted him to do. _The voice warped into Toph's no nonsense, blunt self.

And what was that jump off a cliff?

_You and I both know thats not it, Sugar Queen._

Then what was it?! Katara scowled as she quickly doused her head in the water, now cold from lingering too long in the night air.

The voice didn't answer back, leaving Katara confused and a bit irritated at the vividness of her imagination.

Stupid voice.

Stupid Zuko.

* * *

The night air felt cool, crisp, and inviting. Totally different from the vibe Zuko felt inside his dark room. Contrary to popular belief, he didn't enjoy brooding around all day at all. Who does for that matter?

Quietly Zuko enjoyed the calming atmosphere that nature brought and contemplated in his head tomorrow's lesson with the Avatar, trying somewhat successfully to pull himself out of the depressing rut he'd been in earlier. Only the slushing sound of splashes and water brought him back to reality.

The sound seemed to have come from one of the rooms in the upper levels, probably near where the fountain had stood. With everyone supposedly asleep, the fire prince quickly deduced the chance that the source of the sound being one of them was highly unlikely. He had quickly learned in the years out to sea dealing with pirates and bounty hunters, that the one who deals with everything with suspicion is the one who lives the longest. Zuko always assumed the worst, and so far it had saved his life on more then one occasion. Now, perhaps other people would say this was Zuko being paranoid, but for the banished fire prince, that word held little value, because for Zuko, everything that ever could go wrong in a person's life, went terribly in his. Which meant mysterious splashing sounds in the middle of the night, when his companions were soundly sleeping, could have only meant one thing. An unwanted guest was being sloppy.

With stealth and speed he had not used since he had put the Blue Spirit persona to rest, the fire prince darted off, eager to find the source of the sound.

The temple's architectural structure was not hard to figure out, but it didn't mean he was a path-finding expert. Every time he thought he was close to the source of the noise, the route would end up to be a dead end or a set of broken stairs that led to nowhere. But he was not one to give up so easily.

Finding a clearing up ahead of one of the stairs, he realized the noise was becoming louder. Zuko grinned; he had finally found his intruder. He silently made his way around the shadow of a pillar, creeping slowly as to not give away his position.

_What an amateur_.

The intruder was making no attempt at hiding his presence at all! In fact, all that splashing and noise seemed carelessly loud from this close. And what was he doing there anyway? Perhaps the intruder was thirsty? The prince mused over the boorish intruder. But no matter what his reason, the sneak was about to learn the hard way why one shouldn't be trespassing on the Avatar's camp. At least not while Zuko was around.

The prince leaned in against his pillar, with his eyes studying the shadow of his intruder. Slim and small of stature. Unless this was the Avatar himself, this was going to be no challenge at all. Especially considering Zuko had the element of surprise.

With reflexes quick as the lightning he still struggled to wield, Zuko jumped from his hiding place and threw a fierce backhand, flames erupting behind his speeding fist in a long arch, projecting their way to their designated target.

The flames cleared, but intruder must have ducked underneath the water, because they hit nothing. His flames stuck only air, illuminating the darkness for a shocking moment.

The fountain was empty.

Then it erupted. Water streamed off the intruder's body as they stood, jetting off in angry ripples. As the figure rose, Zuko saw something that struck him to his core.

Two very blue, and very angry eyes emerged from their watery sanctuary.

"Oh no..." Zuko moaned quietly to himself; somehow the universe must find it amusing to torture him.

"Katara... I-I can explain..."


	2. Chapter 2:Finding Acceptance

Author's note: **Trombe: Man writing a Zutara is harder then I thought.**

_artsyelric: so, some kataang stuff ahead, just warning you! we know we're writing a zutara, but this is part of avatar, and that means that katara and aang do have at least the inklings of a relationship. ignoring that can't be allowed. besides, i support that ship too! aang is so cutsey! and he's gonna be KICK ASS when he gets bigger (he's already pretty kick ass at 12, damn!) anywhoo, stuff it and read - zutara _will_ resume, so hang in there! _

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 2: Finding Acceptance**

* * *

Katara had just managed to get her mind off Zuko, and finally felt at ease enough to try and get some sleep, when she heard something in the darkness behind her, like a footstep on stone. She turned towards it, but after a few moments of silence, decided it had been nothing. _Probably just the wind; I'm sure little rocks fall down this cliff all the time. I'm sure I'm just being paranoid._

She sighed and rose from her bath, wringing out her hair in the cool night air. She shivered once, and was just about to reach for her warm clothes when she heard an all to familiar sound.

The roar of flames.

Fire bending.

She threw herself into the fountain water just in the nick of time. Fire laced over her head, and she felt her scalp singe slightly from the heat before she was fully submerged. _The fire nation! How did they find us? What are they doing here?_

Her heart raced, but she planted her feet firmly on the fountain floor, and she gathered water around her arms. The moment the flames cleared away, Katara stood, prepared for anything.

Except for what she saw.

Zuko stood there, staring at the gaping, barely clad waterbender, who's chest was heaving in fear and frustration, her hair singed, and her eyes as fiery as any. His jaw dropped, and he pulled back, stammering as Katara's mind struggled to understand the situation.

And then she realized why Zuko was gaping. She was in her underwear.

Everything fell apart.

The water dropped from her arms as she crossed them over her chest and dropped straight down into the fountain with a girlish squeal, her face turning scarlet and goosebumps shooting up her arms. And before Zuko could open his mouth (whether to protest, explain, or whatever else, Katara didn't care), her voice raised in the cry only a baby sister can make - "SOKKAAA!!"

* * *

So it was that Sokka was woken from his deep sleep, swinging his meteorite sword, only to have to trudge up to the fountain in the dead of the night, worried sick for his baby sister.

Aang popped out of the door next to him. "What's happening? Did you hear that?"

"The whole world heard that!" Sokka growled, waving his arms over-dramatically. "We'll have the fire nation all over us by morning!"

"If they're not already here," Aang pointed out, his boyish excitement fading.

Sokka's eyes narrowed. "Keep everyone here, then come after me."

Aang nodded, and Sokka sprinted up the stairs. Sokka felt his heart racing from more than running. He paused at the top of the staircase. He was mere feet away from the opening where he remembered the fountain being, but just around the corning of the spiral staircase, he could see firelight dancing across the walls in bursts. _Fire Nation! Katara!_

Decided his sister couldn't wait, he hefted his sword and ran around the corner with a brave (and stupid) shout. But the top landing was completely empty. Sokka stopped and scratched his head, sure he'd seen fire here a moment ago.

"Up here!" a voice barked, and Sokka gave a startled cry, swinging his sword and knocking himself over.

He glanced up. "Zuko?" And indeed it was. The fire prince was pinned on the roof by a transparent sheet of ice so thick it only barely cleared Sokka's head in places. The water warrior suppressed a great laugh only long enough to ask, "What's hangin'?" before breaking into self satisfied guffaws. "Oh, I kill myself!" he practically wept, ignoring the firebender's glower. "Hanging... haha..."

"Get me down!" Zuko shouted, huffing more fire angrily as the ice melted.

"Geez, you're grumpy!" Sokka whined, standing and smacking at the icy barrier with the hilt of his sword. "Can't even take a joke..."

"Stop joking, and hit harder!" Zuko growled.

"Stop yelling at me, and bend more fire, hotman!"

"AHHH!"

Zuko's final angry outburst melted the ice at the exact moment Sokka's hilt broke through. The ice shattered, and Zuko dropped like a rock, straight down onto Sokka, smashing both boys into the ground.

"Where's Katara?" Sokka inquired as he untangled himself. "We heard yelling. What happened?"

"What happened?" Katara's angry voice suddenly echoed him. She stepped onto the landing, still stuffing her arm through her shirt, her hair damp and loose, her eyes shooting daggers. "What _happened?" _Her voice reached that squeaky high place she used only when extremely mad. Sokka recognized the warning signs immediately, and prepared for the barrage. _"He_ happened!" she hissed, venom in her words. "He tried to kill me!"

"I did not!" Zuko protested as he got up slowly. Katara's eye twitched, and Sokka knew his sister was loosing it. But Zuko flushed under her stare. "Okay, well, maybe I did, but not on purpose!"

"What?" both water tribe siblings barked.

"Look at this!" Katara screeched, holding up the end of her hair. "You burned my hair! Look! Half a second slower, and I would be dead! How is that not on purpose! My _hair_, Zuko!" she practically wept.

"Well, what the hell were you doing flouncing around half naked in a fountain in the middle of the night!" he yelled back.

"Half naked?" Sokka demanded, his voice harsh and oddly high.

Katara rolled her eyes. "I was taking a bath! It's not my fault I can't sleep with traitorous, backstabbing firebenders walking our halls! What were _you_ doing?"

He flushed again and glanced away. "I... thought you were an intruder."

"So you just thought you'd shoot a fireball at me?" Katara demanded in a voice that could have cracked glass.

"What would you have done!?" Zuko roared.

"ENOUGH!"

The three turned to look at Aang, who had come up quietly while they bickered. "Stop fighting!"

Katara humphed, tossing her hair. "Tell that to him."

Aang eyes narrowed. "I'm telling it to both of you," he said simply. Katara starred at him, fury in her eyes, but shock too. Aang blushed under her gaze. "I hate it when people fight..." he added, the steel leaving his voice.

"So, let me get this straight," Sokka recapped, rubbing his temple. "Neither of you could sleep. Katara took a bath. Zuko, you heard her, and jumped to the conclusion she was an enemy. So you sneaked up on her, without checking to see who it was, and shot fire at her. Then Katara, you froze him to the roof and woke up everyone from here to Ba Sing Se."

Katara turned her nose up at the last, jutting her jaw out in a very un-lady-like manner. Zuko just looked down at his feet.

Suddenly Sokka broke out laughing.

Katara's eyes widened, and she inhaled sharply, clearly affronted by her brother. Zuko stared at the boy like all sanity had left him. Aang was struggling not to laugh himself, feeling that Katara was already mad enough at him. Momentarily, he assumed the emotionless expression he'd faced Koh with.

"Sokka, that is _not_ funny!" Katara screamed at her gasping brother. "This bastard shot fire at me! He _ruined _my hair, and he peeked at me in the bath!" Katara ignored Zuko's "did not!" and plowed right on. "You're supposed to go all 'older-brothery' on him! You jerk! He tried to _burn_ me!"

"I'm sorry, sis, but you have to admit, that's a pretty... ridiculous - haha - story!" He broke down in more giggles.

Zuko inhaled deeply. He never really meant for any of this to happen. "I'm sorry I burned you," he said quickly. Katara glanced up, trying to catch what he was saying; he was talking so fast. "And I'm sorry I sneaked up on you in the bath."

Her eyes narrowed. "Yeah right."

"Come on, Katara," Aang interjected, trying to smooth things over between his teachers. "He said sorry - that's big for Zuko! It was an accident, and nobody got hurt! Besides, you swim in those underclothes all the time with us!"

"That's not the point!"

"Then what is?"

She spluttered angrily. "Why do you all always take his side! It's only a matter of time until you all see what he'd made of. This isn't the first thing he's had to be 'sorry' for - apologies can only go so far! Well, you're not going to suck me into that pity path again, mister!" she added, poking a stiff and unmoving Zuko in the chest. She may as well have poked the stone wall for all it did. Her eyebrow quirked. "Oh, why do I even bother!" she wailed, turning sharply on her heal and running back out into the open area by the fountain.

"Hormones!" Sokka dismissed her. "She'll get over it-"

He cut off abruptly as Zuko slammed a fist into the wall with a shout, streams of flames charring the stone. A few rocks broke loose and tumbled down the steps. "What the hell do you people want from me?!" he huffed, storming off down the stairs.

Sokka and Aang's gazes met, their eyes darting after the two departing parties. Sokka sighed. "It's too late for this..."

Aang gave a mischievous smile. "I get Katara!" he shouted, turning and darting past Sokka into the open corridor.

"What?" Sokka growled. "No..." He gnashed his teeth together as he started off down the stairs after Zuko. "Really, I just wanted to sleep! Stupid spoiled fire prince... stupid whiny sister..."

* * *

"Katara?"

"Oh, don't come out here and be all 'Avatar' on me," the girl raged, stalking away from him. She still felt in no mood to be pacified. She just wanted to rage at that bratty, self-centered prince! "Say what you want, but I know that boy is bad news, Aang, and nothing you can say will change that!"

Aang took her rage in stride, and nodded. "No, I suppose it can't. But nothing _you _can say will change the fact that we need him."

Katara turned her face away angrily. _That_ was exactly the problem. It was why he was here, and why she couldn't send him away. Aang needed him, and she knew it. But she most certainly did not have to like it!

Aang sighed and sat down on the edge of the fountain. "Katara, I won't ask you to be his friend. But I asked you before I let him stay, and you said you'd trust me. There's something different about him now, something good. I can tell."

"Yeah, well, I don't see it."

"He's really trying, Katara. Give him a chance."

She shook her head as she sat down next to the boy. "I already did," she admitted. "And he shot you with lightning."

"No," Aang corrected. "Zuko didn't do that. Katara, we both know that was Azula."

"Same thing," she snapped. "Aang, we can't loose you! This world needs you! ...I need you." When she looked back at him, she felt all the sadness from when he was injured returning to her again. All the sadness and fear _Zuko_ had caused. "I don't know what any of us would do if you died! I _won't _let that happen again!"

"Then you have to let me learn from Zuko." Her eyes narrowed. "It's hard enough having to fight this war without the avatar state. If I don't learn firebending, I'll be at a disadvantage, just like back in Ba Sing Se."

Katara glanced down. "I know, Aang. I just... wish there was another way. I don't like him."

Aang slipped his fingers under her chin, bringing her eyes back to his. "I know." Her big eyes did that beautiful shimmer, the moonlight dancing across them, and Aang swallowed hard. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"If I wasn't the Avatar-"

She laid a finger on his lips. "Then you wouldn't be the Aang I know," she finished for him. She knew Aang hadn't wanted to be the Avatar. He would give almost anything to be a normal boy, to be free to play, and laugh, and love like anyone else. She had been with him longest, so she could sense how strong that desire was. But he was learning to live up to so much, and he was fighting the way no twelve year old should have to. Aang had grown up so much, because everyone needed him. Because _she_ needed him. Even if it meant putting up with Zuko, she couldn't leave Aang. He had become far too special to her. So she gritted her teeth, and choked out, "I'm sorry. I'll... try to be... civil."

He quirked an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Really," she laughed, wondering how he always made her feel better so fast. He smiled that big, cute smile of his, and Katara felt a weak grin cross her face. "Just keep him out of my bath."

Aang chuckled back, and she realized she loved his laugh. He'd been through so much, but he could still laugh like that, so sweet and innocent. She wondered how long it would last, and wanted to cling to it, to this moment, for all time. He wiped his eyes, and put his hand back down on the fountain, on top of hers. He did it as if it were the most casual thing in the world, but Katara noticed his cheeks turning bright red, and felt hers doing the same. He glanced back. "No promises," he said, squeezing her hand.

She smiled. "Right." Then she leaned in and pecked him on the cheek. "Good night, Aang. Sleep well," she added, leaving very quickly so he couldn't see how she flushed at the simple gesture as she hustled off to bed.

If only she could have seen how red Aang's face was behind her...

* * *

Zuko's mind was a maelstrom of guilt, regret, and anger.

Why? Why did these situations keep happening to him?

As the fire prince was irritated once more, steams of hot air were slowly coming from his body, as if his anger couldn't be contained. Finally letting out one more desperate yell, he slammed both of his fists to the ground, causing a wave of fire to dance around him. Its hot touch barely made the fire prince flinch.

As the flames slowly died down, a kneeling Zuko was all that remained behind as the darkness of night returned.

"Feeling better now hot-man?" the voice of the goofy warrior sounded from behind him.

"Why... Why do I keep messing up?" Zuko asked no one in particular. "Why is it so hard control my temper? Even after learning from the masters this... this... rage of mine is still there!"

Sokka could only stare at the angry prince, his arms folded. "Hmm... Maybe you need to learn that's a part of you too."

"What?"

"I don't really know what I'm talking about here but it sounded pretty wise don't you think?" Sokka grinned that sarcastic face.

"...Must be nice, being such a simpleton," Zuko sneered.

"Hey!" Sokka knew an insult when it was hurled his way.

"Look... I'm... I'm sorry... It's just... it's hard. I'm trying my best here to help the Avatar... and... your sister is not exactly the understanding type."

"Hey she was... until Ba Sing Se," Sokka pointed out casually as he leaned against the wall.

Zuko rubbed his temple in frustration. "You don't have to remind me... I know what I did."

"I think you just rub her the wrong way," Sokka provided hopefully. "Sometimes Toph does too. Man, you should see _them_ fight!"

Zuko rose and turned around, facing Sokka's gaze, obvious immune to the boy's humor. "Do you trust me, warrior?"

"What?" Sokka demanded, taken back by the question. "What kind of question is that?"

"Just answer it Sokka."

"..." For once, the loud mouthed warrior was speechless.

Sokka didn't really know what to say. After all this time, the encounters they had with Zuko, he had practically associated his face with the enemy. How was he suppose to answer that now?

"I see..." Zuko took Sokka's silence for an answer he knew all along. Quietly he shuffled his feet together and walked past the water tribe warrior with a casual stride.

"W-wait a minute-" Sokka turned to stop the fire prince.

"I know what it means to betray people Sokka... and I know what its like to be betrayed... really... I understand."

The fire prince stood face to face with the water tribe warrior, and the two could not have been more different from each other. One pale of complexion, the other tanned. One clad in red, passionate and fiery like the element he commanded, the other in blue, like the open seas he voyaged. Yet they stood there, almost like equals.

"I'm not the same person I once was Sokka... I wish your sister and all of you could see that." In a surprising move Zuko placed his right open palm above his heart, his left fist touching the bottom of it, and he bowed. The Agni sign of respect. "My uncle used to say that humility... is the first step towards enlightenment. Maybe I should start now."

Sokka was left speechless. Was a prince of the Fire Nation really bowing to _him_ in respect? It was odd enough that Sokka wondered whether he had tripped along the way and bumped his head, making all of this just a figment of his imagination. Or maybe he was still just dreaming...

He brushed the thought aside. "It's not that I don't trust you..." He sighed out loud. "It's just... it's going to take some time getting used to it, Zuko. I mean, it's not everyday the guy whose been trying to fry the Avatar's butt - and my own! - suddenly becomes the guy who makes us tea." He rubbed the back of his neck. "But... we're trying, you know?"

"That's all I'm asking for." Zuko nodded before walking off on his own.

Sokka was left behind in the dark to ponder. "Yeah... good man talk Sokka... you're the man..." he sarcastically stated out loud.


	3. Chapter 3:The Boiling Rock

Author's note:

_artsyelric: so, we thought that the way avatar portrayed the boiling rock was kind of... mild... for a the highest security prison in the fire nation. we thought it would be interesting to do a remake of that episode in our zutara - but you will find it deviates from the cannon. we just think there should be something there a little scarier than the cooler. plus, as it's a zutara, there'll be some changes, and, well, i'll just let you see XDDD._

**Trombe: Writing the events of a canon story and rewriting that to suit our needs...thats just evil. I like it.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 3: The Boiling Rock  
**

* * *

Katara's eyes snapped open. They were at it, again!

She buried her face in her pillow, aggravated. Though she had promised Aang to try and get along with Zuko, this consisted mainly of her coolly and dispassionately ignoring his presence thus far. Unfortunately, Zuko was the master when it came to ignoring people, and so she didn't seem to faze him much. The result was that there had been no more outbreaks in the last few days, and Katara had seen fairly little of the grim fire prince. Sure, she watched him every time he was with Aang, but they hadn't spoken, and she'd paid him no mind as long as he stayed in line. Which, she had to admit, he had.

But now, she was forced to pay attention to him again - yes, forced! Earlier that evening, after dinner, Sokka and Zuko had gone aside and discussed something at length, and since then, both boys had been brooding. Sokka had been out of everything, and deep in thought, always a bad sign in Katara's opinion, and Zuko looked like a pot set on a low simmering fire. He was constantly watching the water tribe boy over folded fingers, unaware (or at least pretending to be) of the sister watching him. But now, in the middle of the night, they were talking again.

Katara rolled over angrily. She'd been sleeping so poorly lately, knowing Zuko was near, that this disturbance just set her to a grumpy mood. Shoving her hair from her face, she managed to locate the source of the disturbance. Zuko and Sokka's squabbling voices were coming from atop Appa. She growled to herself. She didn't exactly know how much she liked Sokka spending time with Zuko. Her brother seemed to have talked to him after that whole bathing incident, and since then they'd been talking more and more. First sword training yesterday morning, and now this. She was ready to rip out her hair! (Or what remained of its charred ends at least...) She'd called Sokka the other night so he'd kick that snooping jerk's butt, not so he'd get all chummy with the guy! Stupid boys.

It was exhausting being mad at someone all the time. Not just the fact that she was finding it hard to sleep with the object of her hatred so nearby, but mainly because it took real effort to stay angry. She had to constantly watch him, and she wasn't a naturally angry person, so it was stringing her pretty thin. She knew she was tired and was loosing her temper with the other group members, and they usually didn't deserve it. She'd chewed Teo out pretty hard the other day for getting his chair wheel stuck in her sleeping bag, and The Duke had told her to can it. Rude kids or not, in retrospect her reaction had been a bit over the top. The boys were stepping lightly around her now.

Which made her even madder! This was all because of Zuko, so why was she made out to be the bad guy? Just because she spoke out against him all the time, because having him around made her so uncomfortable, meant that she was the one supposedly starting all the trouble between them? And it didn't help that Zuko kept playing mister perfect. Serving people tea, telling bad jokes, carrying heavy things. The jerk! It just made her hatred of him seem more and more unfounded, and she knew that her friends were talking about her behind her back. Urgh! It was so frustrating.

And now Sokka was talking to him, again, and waking her up to do it.

Finally giving up on pretending to still be asleep, she pushed out of her warm covers, just to see Zuko jump off Appa's back, his travel pack thrown over his shoulder. Katara's eyes narrowed suspiciously as she noticed that Sokka also had his weapons and a pack on his back. What were they up to?

She stayed laying on her bed as Sokka found a pen and brush and began scrawling a note. He stuck it carefully into a sleeping Momo's grasp, and the lemur latched onto it with a gurgle. Then he turned around and he and Zuko started scaling the edge of the cliff face, up out of upside-down air temple. Katara's suspicions rose. As soon as she was sure the boys were indeed leaving the camp and not coming back, she darted out of her covers and stole the note from an annoyed Momo, who hissed at her for being woken up. She eyed him angrily, and his ears wilted. "Need meat. Gone fishing?" she scoffed, reading it. "Yeah right. Sokka didn't even take the fishing pole."

Toph's blind eyes suddenly open. "Will you all stop moving around so much and go to sleep?" she demanded. "Really, it's like shining a torch in my eyes, SugarQueen! Well, actually, I'd prefer that," she muttered, already dozing off again.

"Sorry Toph," Katara apologized. "Go back to sleep."

But the earthbender was already out before Katara could finish. She smiled, remembering her fights with Toph, and how they had come to understand each other finally. Zuko was nothing like that. She didn't want to understand him, because then when he eventual betrayed them again (as she just knew he would), it would just hurt all the more. Aang was never going to be prepared for it if Katara was right and Zuko double crossed them. It would hurt him, but she'd be ready.

Her mind made up, she grabbed her water pouches, pulled on a jacket, and rushed over to Appa. "Sorry boy," she whispered, patting his head which woke up the sleeping giant. "Would you fly me up the cliff face real quick? You can come right back here and go to sleep again afterward." Appa grunted and nuzzled her face, making Katara giggle quietly.

Before she left, Katara added a _'me too - Katara'_ to the bottom of the rather pathetic note, and returned it to Momo, who was curling up again to sleep. Then she scrambled up onto Appa's head, and motioned to him to be quiet. Then they took off, and in a matter of moments were up the cliff. She kept Appa low, and soon as she saw the dark red colors of Zuko's war balloon being inflated. She flew close, and then Appa dropped down. "Thanks boy," she whispered. "Stay low, and go back to camp, okay? Don't let anyone see you!" she added as the big, fluffy bison rose into the air with a flap of his tail.

The boys had just cut the ropes on the war balloon when she got there and it was rising from the clearing. Taking a deep breath, she darted into the dark clearing and whipped her water across the bottom of the basket, creating an icy extension beneath it. Then she jumped, and caught the open edge with her fingers, and just managed to haul herself onto the icy ledge before the balloon got too high. She gave a shiver and was glad she'd worn her jacket if she was going to ride the whole way to... wherever it was they were going, in an icy cave on the bottom of a flying balloon.

But her mind was made up. Whatever Zuko was up to, she wasn't going to let him get away with it - and spying on one's brother is the reason little sisters were made! So she wrapped her travel blanket around her shoulders and tried to find the most comfortable position to lay back and rest in for the remainder of the trip. The boys were quiet, however, and Katara began to grow tired. Trusting Zuko was at least competent enough not to crash his own balloon, she decided to allow herself to catch up on the sleep they had so rudely deprived her of. The waterbender slipped into a much needed sleep in the ice chair beneath the balloon.

* * *

The trip had been strangely calm as Zuko had noticed. The two of them had barely payed attention to one another. Sokka seemed to just stare at whatever it was that caught his attention and Zuko kept himself occupied as he brought life to the balloon with the bright flames shooting from his palm.

It actually felt weird. Here they were going on a trip to the most dangerous prison in the Fire Nation, with their lives at stake, for a slight possibility of finding war prisoners that might not even be there, and they hadn't exchanged even one word with each other since they left the Western Air Temple. No worries, no concerns, no fears. Just... an awkward silence between two comrades who didn't seem to have anything in common.

_I__ should have kept my mouth shut._ _This is insane, _Zuko pondered silently. _We haven't even discussed a plan._

He kept clenching his fist while his water tribe accomplice rubbed his neck, as the two extremely different boys struggled to think of something to pass the time. It was going to be a long trip.

Zuko was just starting to wonder if the balloon was feeling sluggish this trip, when his companion finally came up with something to say. "Pretty clouds..." Sokka commented nonchalantly, breaking the silence.

The prince turned his head towards the other boy slightly, and then outside the balloon to where the vast sky was. "Yeah... fluffy."

That slight conversation ended there and then as the two couldn't think of anything else more to say. What else was there to say about clouds?

More time passed by and once again Zuko found the trip continued to be a quiet one. Zuko didn't really mind. He often traveled by himself most of the time and silence was his unspoken companion.

Unfortunately the same could not be said of the Water Tribe warrior who he accompanied. Sokka began whistling an unknown melody.

"What?" Zuko turned around and inquired.

"Oh..." Sokka gave a slightly confused look. "Um... I didn't say anything."

Zuko sighed once again on the inside. _Yeah... this is going to be a long trip all right.  
_

"You know a friend of mine actually designed these war balloons," Sokka declared, gesturing around with pride in his voice.

The fire prince's curiosity got the better of him. "No kidding?"

If it was actually true then he was deeply impressed. The war balloons were a crucial integral part of the Fire Nation now, used for both military purposes and transportation services. It was a technical marvel. Whoever had designed them must have been a genius.

"Yeah... a balloon," Sokka continued lamely, "...but for war."

Then again looking at the Water Tribe boy with that goofy grin and somewhat slow wit, there was a piece inside of Zuko that doubted that claim. He chose to ignore it, focusing instead on the balloon, as he noticed they were losing altitude. He frowned. Either Sokka was much heavier than he looked, or they really were flying sluggishly today...

"If there's one thing my dad is good at it's war." With a flick of his wrist, Zuko shot more flames out from his palm and into the furnace engine.

"Yeah, it seems to run in the family," Sokka agreed.

Zuko was taken back by that comment as he quickly turned to face Sokka. "Hey hold on. Not everybody in my family is like that."

"I know, I know. You've changed," Sokka eased him in.

Zuko paused for a moment, as his eyes lowered in shame.

"I meant my uncle."

Sokka looked at Zuko, and the prince saw sympathy in his blue eyes.

"He was more of a father to me..." Zuko revealed, "...and I really let him down..."

He wondered if Sokka noticed the hurt his voice. Zuko knew Sokka understood fully why Katara hated him, but it seemed the water tribe boy was determined to make his own opinion. Katara might be his sister, but in many aspects Sokka and Katara were as different to each other as night was to day. Katara was always the more passionate of the two, the one more in touch with her emotions. But Sokka prided in himself his reasoning skills, even Zuko could tell. He might not be as sharp as his father was rumored to be, but Sokka had a way of just knowing when people were being honest with themselves. Zuko was just confused and made the wrong choices, but that didn't necessarily make him a monster, and he thought Sokka was starting to see that.

"I think your uncle would be really proud of you. Leaving your home to come help us... that's hard," Sokka admitted honestly.

"It wasn't that hard," Zuko replied.

"Really?" Sokka appeared genuinely confused. Living a life of luxury, having girls fawn at you because you were royalty, the fame, the glory... It was unlikely a boy from a tiny village could understand how leaving all that could be easy. But for Zuko it was. Therefore Zuko was surprised when Sokka's next question managed to find the heart of the matter. "You didn't leave behind anyone you cared about?"

Companionship. It was one thing Zuko was sure the Avatar group hadn't thought him capable of. It was a thing he tried to pretend he didn't need. But he was being more honest with himself now, so it only felt natural he should be more honest with his companions too.

"Well I did have a girlfriend... Mai..." Zuko stated, with a slight fondness as he said the name.

Sokka blinked, surprise evident on his face, and Zuko felt himself smile a little. He remembered Mai's cool demeanor, her soft pale skin, her long raven hair, her deep yet gentle voice. The image of her still haunted him with every passing night. A part of him wanted it to.

"That gloomy girl who sighs a lot?" Sokka brimmed genuinely interested, but still sporting that goofy smile.

This was a side of Zuko even the prince himself was unfamiliar with. Sokka could never have expected it, so Zuko wasn't surprised the boy was so intrigued. For Sokka, it was probably like talking to one of his teenage friends back home, as they talked about the girls in their tribe, or whatever it was that interested them. But for Zuko, relating to someone on a more personal level was kind of... foreign.

"Yeah..." Zuko smiled a bit sadly at Sokka's description of Mai. But the smile quickly disappeared underneath that scowling face once again. "Everyone in the Fire Nation thinks I'm a traitor. I couldn't drag her into it."

Sokka rubbed his chin. "Actually, I kind of understand where the you're coming from. I have... a girlfriend, a Kyoshi Warrior, and I don't want anything bad to happen to her. Ever." He sighed. "Unfortunately, I don't know where she is right now. But I'm gonna find her..."

Zuko looked away. At least they both had something in common. "Don't worry too much," Zuko advised. "I know Mai can handle herself, and I would think a Kyoshi warrior could too." He sensed there was still something more too it. "Why, did something happen to her?"

"I'm not sure. But... my first girlfriend turned into the moon..." Sokka stated calmly.

Finding there was no trace of a joke in that line, Zuko only stared quietly. Suddenly, he remembered the battle at the Northern Water Tribe. Zhao had put out the moon, and awakened that awful ocean spirit. But somehow, the moon had been restored. He also remembered the beautiful, white haired maiden he'd seen at the pond where he'd stolen the Avatar. He realized he'd never seen her since, though he'd never thought anything of it until this moment.

Zuko turned back to his flames, unsure what to say. "...That's rough, buddy."

They left it at that.

* * *

The balloon jolted. Katara gasped as she nearly slid off her perch, coming awake so quickly that she almost shouted out before remembering that she was a stow away.

"What happened?" she heard Sokka's voice demand.

"We're going down," Zuko replied, and Katara wondered why they were whispering. And why they were surrounded by steam. "The balloon's not working anymore."

"The air outside is just as hot as the air inside, so we can't fly." Sokka's voice was followed by the burst like sounds of Zuko firebending, but the balloon continued to make no response.

Suddenly Katara realized that there was a boiling lake below them! The steam was rising from it, and she could just make out the bubbling water. In fact, it looked like they were descending through a cloud of steam, into a volcano, and towards a giant building on a tiny island in it's center. She couldn't image a more horrid place.

Just then she slipped on her steaming ledge of ice, letting out a yelp, and realized it was precariously close to melting off the balloon entirely. Breathing on it, she tried to freeze it over, but the air was so hot, it kept melting no matter how fast she froze it. And she realized she was about to have another problem - the balloon was sinking and was about to drop into the bubbling water.

When it descended enough, she decided to try bending the water - maybe she could skate across it and the boys would never know she was there! But while she could bend the water, she knew there was no way she could freeze it, and no way she could touch it. It was simply too hot. She was stuck on the dropping balloon, and soon she'd be boiled alive on the bottom of it.

Her foot slipped on the wet ice, and a large bubble of steam touched her hand. Katara shook it painfully as the bottom of her ice shelter gave way in the heat. She decided it was time to suck up her pride, and yelled.

* * *

"What was that?!" Zuko growled.

"I know that voice anywhere!" Sokka was quick to react as he began to search for the sound of the scream.

"Under the basket!" Zuko pointed out as both boys leaned out and saw a dangling ice-like chair, with a young waterbender in it that they were all too familiar with.

"Katara?!" Sokka yelled in disbelief.

"Um... hi big bro..." Katara grinned weakly as she was still wincing from the painful burn on her hand.

"B... but... how... when... WHY!?" Sokka was flabbergasted.

"Don't just stand there with your mouth open like that Sokka help me!" Katara's fierce blue eyes met her brother's.

"Stop gaping," Zuko barked. "We need to do something. We're gonna hit that water fast!" Sokka blinked stupidly at Zuko, and then leaned over the edge of the balloon, though it was clear Katara was too far away to reach by hand.

"Sokka!" Katara whined when she realized the distance. "Stop doing that and find a rope! There's no time!"

Fortunately for the water tribe siblings, Zuko was not one to waste a moment in his actions when haste was needed. With fast strides, he grabbed a grappling hook from the balloon and hooked it tight to the basket, tying the other end of the rope around his waist. Carefully measuring the distance,the amount of rope required, and the speed he needed to go, he tied if off. It could all go very wrong if he didn't do this right.

But there was no time to check. He braced himself.

"Wait, what are you- Zuko!"

He was off before Sokka could finish that sentence.

Vaulting himself over the basket, he held himself upside down first, like a well trained gymnast, before taking the plunge. Using the force of his flip, the amount of rope that held him Zuko swung himself over to Katara, like a pendulum in motion. He had one chance to get this right. He could already feel the sweat on his brow as the boiling water was coming ever so slowly closer. "Take my hand now!" he shouted as he passed her, upside-down.

With no hesitation Katara's hands met with his as he pulled the Water Tribe girl close to him, she in turn was holding on to him for dear life. Using the added weight as momentum, Zuko shifted their center of gravity as they both swung with a fearsome force. As their pendulum like swing reached its apex, they found themselves not on the bottom of the basket, but high up on the other side. Zuko looked at Katara for a moment. There was no time to say anything. Luckily, she was thinking the very same thing. She jumped, with Zuko propelling her in with a well placed toss. As he swung back down, he pulled his head in, afraid to touch the steaming lake mere inches from the tip of this hair. As his swing climaxed again, he followed the water tribe girl, and came tumbling into the balloon from the other side.

As he lay there trying to catch his breath, Zuko silently thought to himself he had never loved Ty Lee as much as he did in that moment. Her and her acrobatic lessons.

They had made it just in the nick of time as the bottom of the balloon had began skimming across the boiling surface. Sokka muffled a yell as the hot water splashed across his hand.

"Don't you think there might have been a better way of doing that?" Katara hissed.

Zuko glanced at her in shock - hadn't he just saved her? "You're welcome," he offered, contritely, starting to rise. But the basket jarred again as Zuko stood, and he crashed into the side rail. "So what are we supposed to do?" he called quietly to Sokka.

"I don't know," the boy replied. "Crash landing?"

With that prediction, the balloon came to a screeching halt as it smashed against the rocky shore. The three passengers were hurled off the basket as they flipped through the air and landed hard on solid ground.

Groaning in pain Katara, was slow to get up before she found two strong, separate sets of hands pulling her up.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" both Zuko and Sokka ground out through their teeth, Sokka's voice cracking slightly in the process.

"I was just..." Guilty, Katara tried to find words to explain her actions.

"Don't you realize you could have been hurt?!" Sokka angrily chastised, just managing to keep his voice low.

"What were you thinking?!" Zuko added, barely doing the same.

Katara folded her arms stuffily, apparently not liking this double team up. Especially coming from her annoying older brother and the Fire Prince she professed to hate.

"Now listen here, I was-"

"Quiet!" Zuko hissed, quickly covering her mouth with a big hand. "Do you even know where we are?"

She grabbed Zuko's hand and pulled it away, fury in her actions. "No! I-!" Again she was cut off by Sokka's constant shushing.

She finally seemed to take the hint. "No, I don't know where we are," she whispered softly.

Zuko turned his head sideways, and after a moment, Katara's eyes followed, and he heard her gasp. A huge metallic structure loomed in the distance.

"This is the Boiling Rock," Zuko whispered.


	4. Chapter 4:Infiltration

Author's note:

_artsyelric: i am now the proud owner of two coy fish. they live in the pond trombe helped my father build in my backyard. one is black with a white spot, and one is white with a black spot. i have named them twi and la. so please read and review, and i won't be forced to use my moon powers on you! muwahahaha! (ps, isn't it awesome that my whole family's so into avatar that _my mom and dad_ picked out the fish and named them that? so cool!)_

**Trombe: I just love it when you're such a grammar Nazi when it comes to the story and yet you don't fix your own author's note.**

**Anyway yeah we're just churning out this story faster then ever. I'm quite surprised. This was like a project we barely thought of and yet its more popular then the one we worked the hardest on (Freedom's Prodigal Son). Ah...the power of Zutara shipping.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 4: Infiltration  
**

* * *

"The Boiling Rock?" Katara demanded. "What is that?"

"Only the most dangerous, deadly Fire Nation prison on the planet!" Sokka fumed, just barely managing to keep his voice down. "Did I mention dangerous, Katara!"

"Yeah, I think you covered that." Katara rolled her eyes at her brother.

"Why are you here?" Zuko cut in smoothly, refusing to let her slip by unjustified.

Her eyes spun to his, and she could see that there was anger just below the surface of his eyes again, but she saw for the first time something new - control. Yes, Zuko was very angry, but for once, it wasn't controlling him. _I'm not here to notice his growth! _Katara reprimanded herself. _I'm here because _he _can't be trusted!_

"Obviously, I followed you," she bit out. "Like I'd really trust you to go off alone with my brother. Sneaking off in the dead of night with some lame excuse of a note! And I was right! You took him straight here, to this Fire Nation prison-"

Zuko started to move, but Sokka responded first. _"I'm _the one who wanted to come here, Katara." Her mouth hung open like a fish, and she saw Zuko grin triumphantly from the corner of her eye. When she turned her gaze back to him, the firebender's face was completely blank. Not even Koh the Facestealer could have read his expression. "Katara, listen," Sokka explained. "Zuko says this is where he thinks they would keep Dad. It was really close to where we were - I mean, if he's here, don't you want to find him?"

"Oh, Sokka..."

Katara felt that mothering urge coming over her. Sokka and her mother had been gone so long, she was just used to taking care of him - and the pain of being separated from their father was something they both shared. But Sokka had always felt it in a more personal way than her. Katara couldn't remember much of anything about their mother, and little more of their father. When she had finally met up with him again, she had been unsure of how to act around him, and they hadn't worked well together until the invasion on the day of the eclipse. But for Sokka, losing their dad was like losing anyone else in the group, only worse, because it was his father. Katara knew he felt he'd let their dad down, and that nothing she said would make much difference now, but she hated seeing that hurt in her brother's eyes. "Sokka, this was a bad idea."

"Katara, Dad might be-"

"But... it was very brave." She smiled weakly at her foolish brother who returned her grin with one of his own, then she glanced down. After a moment, Katara's gaze spun angrily to Zuko. "Why didn't you stop him?"

Zuko looked taken aback. "Was it my job?"

"Obviously! Sokka's worried about our dad - a good friend would have told him this was insane."

"I did tell him this was insane. He wanted to come anyway," the Fire Prince insisted.

"Then you should have stopped him." She paced back and forth between them. "Or at the very least woken us up."

"Katara!" Sokka interfered, "men don't snitch on other men!"

"Ah!" Zuko growled, "you people and your rules!"

"Well, whatever, we're here now, so let's do something." Sokka began shoving the balloon off the edge of the island and into the lake.

"What are you doing?" Zuko demanded.

"Something!" Sokka insisted.

"Not that!" Katara protested.

"How are we supposed to get off the island if you sink the balloon?" Zuko pointed out.

"We'll figure something out," Sokka replied off-handedly. "I suspected it might be a one-way ticket."

"You _what?" _Katara gasped.

Zuko raised an eyebrow as Sokka carefully surveyed which part of the balloon was alright to touch. "You knew this would happen and you wanted to come anyway?"

"Look," Sokka reasoned, "our dad might be here. We had to come and see."

"I love Dad, Sokka, but don't lump me in on this one!" Katara said dryly.

"My bad," her brother amended sarcastically. "_I_ had to come and see. Katara just stuck onto the bottom of our balloon with no idea she might kill herself."

Zuko rubbed his temple as the water tribe siblings bickered. "Uncle said I never think things through, but this... this is just crazy!"

"Actually, Sokka," Katara nodded, "this may shock you, but I have to agree with Zuko on this point." Zuko appeared even more flustered by her outright statement, obviously glad someone was agreeing with him, but still clearly confused that it was her.

"Hey, I never wanted either of you to come along in the first place!" Sokka insisted. "And for the record, I always think things through. But my plans haven't exactly worked lately, so this time I'm playing it by ear. So there."

"Sokka," Katara sighed.

"No wait!" Zuko protested.

But Sokka gave a final heave and the balloon slid free of the land and slipped deep into the water. The trio watched as it slowly sank deep in the steaming lake.

"You better not be expecting me to waterbend that out later," Katara chided. "I really don't think I can..."

"No. Look," the boy reasoned as the crimson colors sunk beneath the boiling lake, "it doesn't work anyway, and we don't want anyone to find it. It'll give us away."

"So you do have a plan?" Katara surmised, sounding relieved.

"No, not really." Her face dropped as her brother continued. "But I do know what we have to do. We need to infiltrate the prison and search for any war prisoners. If there were any from the water tribe, it stands to reason that just about any guard would know, for security reasons."

"I suppose," Zuko pondered. "Is your dad a bender?" Sokka shook his head. Zuko shrugged, looking a little less sure. "Maybe then," he guessed. "Probably." Katara wondered if he was humoring them or being honest.

But Sokka nodded positively. "Good enough for me."

"Sokka!" Katara objected again, emphasizing his name. "Look, I'm all for you, really. I want Dad back, but this is... really dangerous!"

"I know," her brother insisted.

"How are you even going to get a guard to tell you if Dad's here?"

"Maybe we could catch one and force him to tell us," Zuko suggested. Katara and Sokka stared at him with dead expressions. "What?"

"Come on," Sokka pointed out. "What guard who works in a prison full of deadly criminals would be afraid of a bunch of teenagers?"

"He has a point," Katara backed her brother, and Zuko was forced to agree.

"Maybe... maybe we could get uniforms," Sokka considered, scratching his chin in thought.

"Uniforms?" Katara asked, trying to follow along with her brother's quick mind.

"Yeah, guard uniforms. There must be a bunker where they keep them. If we could get some, then maybe we could disguise ourselves. See? The guards would tell us about the prisoners if they thought _we _were guards too!"

"That makes sense," Katara agreed. "But how would you get them?"

"We'd have to steal them," Zuko interjected. "Shouldn't be too hard." He gave a satisfied smile as if he knew something they didn't.

Katara quirked an eyebrow. "Oh really. Experienced with stealing stuff, huh?"

"...You could say that," Zuko admitted heavily, his smile fading. "That and breaking into Fire Nation strongholds." Katara wondered why she wasn't any more surprised. "But it won't be easy."

"Right," Sokka agreed, rising and checking his weapons.

Katara stood and bent some of the boiling water out of the lake, swirling it to cool it for a minute before filling her skins with the liquid weapon. "I'm ready," she declared.

"You're what?" Zuko asked.

"Ready. To break in and stuff."

The fire prince glanced at Sokka, who shrugged slowly with his shoulders. "Ah, Katara, no offense," her brother said, "but it might be better if you wait out here."

"How do you see that?" she asked dangerously.

"Oh, I don't know," he sarcastically remarked. "Maybe it's because we're sneaking into a top security Fire Nation prison, and you want me to take a _female waterbender! _Do you _want_ to die?"

"Oh, but it's a good idea to send the most wanted ex-prince of the Fire Nation?" she protested.

Sokka glanced at Zuko, who gave a small wry look. "I guess," her brother agreed.

"Ah! That is so not fair! He's _my _dad too!"

"Yeah," Zuko admitted, "but if you got caught, things would be much worse for you than either of us." His gold eyes locked on hers, and she was momentarily stunned by the brightness of them. They were like embers, but they gave her cold shivers, and she could feel how serious he was. "Believe me... This prison isn't someplace you'd want to be," he said icily.

When he looked away, Katara was left with the same, odd sensation she experienced after he saw her bathing the other day - the frightening feeling, as if he'd seen straight through her. She rubbed her arms and turned away from him, knowing she'd lost this battle. "Fine," she caved. "But what do you expect me to do out here?"

"You could work on figuring out how to get out of here," Sokka recommended. "It'd be nice to know the strengths and weaknesses of this fortress from the outside. Patrol the border, see where the lake's currents are, and where the security is tight and loose. Any of it could be important. Also hiding places, where we can meet out of sight. You'll be our contact if we can't meet inside."

"Right," she agreed reluctantly. "Then you better leave the stuff that you don't need. Hand them over."

The boys passed off their extra supplies and equipment to Katara. Once she had gotten a handle on Sokk'a black sword and Zuko's pair of Dao blades, she turned her attention back to Sokka. Quietly and swiftly she hugged her brother. "Be careful," she whispered. "I don't want to have to come in there after you."

He grinned. "I'll be fine, Katara! Seriously. What else can go wrong?"

"Honestly... I hate it when you say that." She smiled weakly at him.

"Why?"

"Cause something usually does." She hugged him one last time before they parted.

Zuko started to follow Sokka, but she grabbed his arm. He turned to face her with an expression that looked like he was expecting her to go off on him. "Take care of him," she said simply, then turned and walked away, leaving a confused Zuko in her wake.

"I hope you know what you're doing," she heard Zuko whisper to Sokka as he caught up. "There's no turning back now. And... your sister's crazy..."

_Please, come back safe,_ she prayed, as Sokka's laughter faded.

* * *

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all..." Sokka scratched his head, stumped at the puzzle that lay before him, the actual break in.

The Water Tribe warrior had pictured it so much easier in his head. The Boiling Rock truly lived up to its name as one of the most impenetrable prisons ever, and more. Thick metallic walls, sentry posts at every corner, and one side of the prison guarded well by a jagged rocky cliff. He sighed deeply. This was no prison. This was a fortress.

"Of course this isn't a good idea!" Zuko berated him. "What makes you think breaking into one of the world's most notorious prisons is a good idea?"

"Hey you didn't have to come, you know," Sokka pointed out, realizing that Zuko had a natural way of shooting just about everything he said down, and it was beginning to irritate him.

"Somebody has to keep you alive long enough to actually think us a plan out of here," Zuko answered without looking back at him, as he too began to survey the prison walls.

"Hey... what's that over there?" Sokka pointed out.

Out in the distance he could make out a section among the walls the did not have a sentry on it but rather was only guarded by the loose rocky canyon.

"...a blind spot," Zuko answered as he smiled.

Sokka returned the prince's grin with a triumphant one of his own. "Exactly."

Stealthily the two crept up against the rocky cliffs as they began their silent ascension.

When there was no more solid footing or handholds to grab hold of, it was time for the grappling hooks to do their job. Sokka smirked as he twirled the long metal hook around before launching it up into the air and biting into the top part of the wall. He was an excellent climber. This shouldn't be too hard.

"Hurry up, slowpoke, before I leave you behind."

Sokka blinked up the cliff face at his partner. He'd been so deep in thought he barely noticed Zuko near the top of the prison, pulling himself up the rope with such speed and grace he didn't make a sound.

"W-what... but... I... when... Gah!" Sokka scratched his head furiously.

Sokka knew Zuko was a very competent firebender. One of the best he had ever seen in fact. He knew Zuko did not slack off when it came to the physical aspect of the martial arts, as made evident when he trained the Avatar. But he did not expect the prince to be such an agile climber.

Then again... there had just been that whole incident with the war balloon.

"...show-off," Sokka grunted as he began to pull himself up.

* * *

Getting in had been easy, Zuko mused. But it would be getting out that would prove to be tough. Hopefully Sokka would deliver on that as he'd promised. Zuko did not expect to see his destiny ending with him captured and tortured here, at the Boiling Rock.

The two of them had easily infiltrated the compound. A prison as big as the Boiling Rock made it simple enough for two intruders to casually blend in if they were careful.

Eventually, Zuko had managed to track down their desired location after much trial and error, and now they were standing just down the hall from their target. The Fire Prince peered cautiously around the corner, his breathing tense and his senses ever alert. Looking at the warrior beside him he felt Sokka's anxiousness as well. Zuko was well aware of the dangers of espionage, but it never took away the edge when he actually had to do it. Without any disguises, he felt naked. He was sure Sokka felt the same way. They needed to get those uniforms fast.

The room held only one guard, but Zuko was not one to underestimate any of his opponents. He could not afford it. There was no room for mistake here in the Boiling Rock.

Zuko edged around the corner, closer to the guard. He took a deep breath, and with surprising agility, he leap up as quietly as possible, his hands finding grip holdings along the ceiling. Pressing himself flat against the ceiling, he adjusted himself so that he was suspended across the hall with his hands and feet pressed against the walls. He could crawl, carefully, across the ceiling this way, as long as his strength didn't give out. Before starting, he strenuously stretched his neck as he looked back down to where Sokka was. The warrior was mouthing a silent but exaggerated, _What are you doing?!_

Zuko held in his grunt. As sweat began to trickle down his face he knew he could not keep this up forever. He had to act fast. _Trust me,_ he mouthed back.

When he was sure the hall was empty, he crawled forward and positioned himself silently above the yawning guard. With a deep breath, he dropped silently behind the man. With quick motions, his hands struck. He wrapped them around the man's throat, holding in his windpipe and locking him in a strangle hold. The man struggled briefly, smashing Zuko back against the wall, but Zuko kept a firm grip on the larger man until he finally dropped into unconsciousness.

Breathing heavily, Zuko checked both ways to make sure no one had heard the struggle. Then he motioned down the hall, and a wary Sokka appeared from around the corner.

"Smooth," the water tribe warrior complemented as Zuko detached the keys from the man's belt. "But won't he tell his superiors when he wakes up that someone stole uniforms?"

"Probably," Zuko replied, opening the door. Then he leaned down and returned the keys to the man's belt. "That what these uniforms are for." sokka gave him a look stuck somewhere between puzzled and 'duh' and Zuko sighed. "You just follow my lead."

Sokka stepped into the small supply room. The Water Tribe boy scratched his head curiously as he eyed the surplus of uniforms and noted the absence of armaments. "Why don't they have weapons?"

"A prisoner can steal your weapon," Zuko informed him. "Instead, most guards here can firebend, so you'll have to be particularly careful. Since, you know... you can't."

Sokka nodded as he pulled the uniform over his head. "I can hide my boomerang, but it's a good thing I left my sword with Katara."

"Don't forget your shoulder plates," Zuko reminded him, pulling on a pair of pointy boots.

"Here's a helmet," Sokka added, tossing it to the Fire Prince.

"Ow!" Zuko growled, holding up an arm to protect his face as the helmet bounced off his forearm. "Be quiet!"

"You're the one making noise!" Sokka hissed. "Don't they teach you to catch in the Fire Nation?"

Zuko snorted as he pulled his shoelace tight. "I don't see so well out of my left eye."

"Really?" Sokka demanded. "Seems like I would have noticed that..."

Zuko blinked. "I thought you had! You hit me there with your boomerang the first time we met." The fire prince would not believe he'd been that humiliated by a fluke.

"Oh yeah..." Sokka grinned sheepishly.

"It's not like I _can't _see out of it," Zuko added hotly. "Just... not as well as I should. Sometimes things sneak up on me."

"Duly noted," Sokka agreed. "Don't drop heavy stuff on Toph, and don't throw at Zuko's left eye."

"You dropped heavy stuff on Toph?" Zuko's right eye brow raised, remembering how hard it was to just sneak up on the young blind earthbender.

"Not on purpose!"

Zuko found himself grinning. Working with the Water Tribe boy wasn't nearly as horrible as he once would have thought. Sokka was actually kind of entertaining.

The guard in the hallway groaned, pulling Zuko back to the present. "Now's not the time," Zuko insisted, grabbing a shoulder guard and shoving it over Sokka's head.

"Strap up."

"Man!" the warrior whined, "this is heavy!"

"What are you talking about, this is light armor! Even the female guards wear it."

"It's chafing my arms."

"You'll get over it," Zuko growled, pulling his helmet on. "Come on."

When they got outside the door and closed it behind them, Zuko nudged the sleeping guard with his foot. "Hey, wake up you!" he commanded. The man groaned again as he came to. "Sleeping on the job?" Zuko asked with a grin, then he laughed kind of pathetically at his own joke.

The was a spanned silence, and Zuko glared sideways as his companion. He was just starting to panic - no one would believe that horrible attempt at a joke! - but Sokka finally took the hint and laughed too. "Really man," he said, patting the sitting soldier on the head, "we're all guilty of it, but could you not block the hall?"

The man rubbed his head. "Someone knocked me out..."

Sokka glanced at Zuko, who gave him a disbelieving look from behind his visor. "You sure you're not still dreaming, man? Your helmet's still on, and the door's still locked," the disguised warrior added, pushing on it. "Still got your keys?"

The man checked his belt loop. "Yeah, right here..."

"Then why would someone knock you out?"

"What did he look like?" Zuko asked.

"I... I don't know," the man admitted, rubbing his head. "Maybe I did dream it..."

"Well, hang in there man," Sokka grinned, slapping him on the back again. "You don't have to make up stories for us anyway - we won't bust you!"

"Yeah," he admitted. "It would be pretty embarrassing if the Warden found out..."

"Don't worry," Zuko agreed. "We won't tell him, if you don't."

"Thanks guys," the guard sighed, obviously relieved he wasn't going to be ratted out for sleeping on the job. "Did you two need something from the supply room?"

"No, no," Sokka assured him. "Just passing by. Have a good day!" he added, as he and Zuko moved around the corner and into the prison. "Whew!" the boy added as soon as they rounded the corner. "That was a close one. Good plan though. He really thought he fell asleep."

"It probably wouldn't have worked without you to convince him," Zuko added, more relieved than he let on.

"Yep," Sokka grinned, stretching his arms proudly. "That's me. Sokka, the smooth talker."

Zuko's face dropped. "I'm sure," he agreed dryly - he may be entertaining, but Sokka was most certainly a fool.

"Don't worry about it," Sokka added, slinging his arm around Zuko's shoulders in manly affection. "You'll get the hang of it eventually. You just gotta relax, and not be so... stiff."

"Thanks." The Water Tribe warrior missed how grim Zuko's face was behind his helmet. The prince searched for a change of topic. "I hope these disguises work." _That was so lame!_ he realized. _I never know what to say. These are my friends, not people I command, and I have to figure out how to relate!_

But if Sokka thought the comment lame, he didn't let on. Instead he just agreed. "We just have to lay low and find my dad as soon as possible. Besides," he added with a quirky grin, "they worked on the last guy."

"Yeah," Zuko reluctantly agreed, "but he didn't seem too bright."

Suddenly there was the sound of shuffling feet, and a bunch of guards ran down the hall they had just turned out of. One of them noticed the boys and called out. "Guards! There's a scuffle in the yard! Come on!"

Zuko and Sokka looked at each other before sighing. "This could be trouble..." both of them surmised.


	5. Chapter 5:Prison Banter

Author's note:

_artsyelric: how the hell do you spell chi tzeng?? chit zeng... chitzen... chi tsang... wah! help me trombe! and fans, forgive me if it's wrong!_

**Trombe: You know...its a good thing I go over the parts you wrote. Man, can you ever spell the names right?**

_artsyelric: no! wah! i'm too white for these chinese names TT...TT thanks for saving me! i love writing with you... so, from now on, i declare you 'sir spell check', and myself 'the grammar nazi'. who refuses to use capitalization on author's notes XDDD_

_but on a more serious note, if you like our work, please check out our jet story! we got like, a million hits on this as soon as it was released - thanks guys! you all rock! - but avatar's not all about the shipping (no matter how cool it is!) actually, this zutara is just a side project for us. we're really proud of our jet story, so if you like him or our writing at all, please check it out. it's called freedom's prodigal son, and it's about the life and death of jet, and the future of the freedom fighters._

_but back to zutara! please enjoy!_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 5: Prison Banter **

* * *

"Guards, didn't you hear me? There's a scuffle in the yard. Let's move!"

Zuko shrugged at Sokka, and the two boys hustled to join the flood of guards heading down the hall. When they emerged into the daylight, they found a circle of guards and prisoners, all surrounding two men. One was a stocky guard who seemed to have a big attitude, and the other was a burly prisoner with a thick neck. Sokka and Zuko mimicked the other guards, pushing their way through the prisoners and making a circle barrier around the arguing pair.

"I didn't do anything," the big prisoner stated. "I'm going back to my cell."

But this didn't seem the be the response the guard wanted. He created a fire whip from the air. "Stop right there Chi Tzang," he threatened, waving it menacingly.

Zuko's face tightened and he started to take an angry step forward. This guard was a firebender! They were the bringers of the flame. As firebenders, they represented fiery life and courage. Once, they were revered for their martial courage and unwavering spirit. Now, it disgusted the prince to think that only bullies and tyrants like this remained of the glorious heritage they once possessed. This was exactly the kind of thing that gave firebenders such a bad name! But before he could make a move, he felt Sokka's hand tighten on his arm. The boy shook his head discreetly. "We can't blow our cover," he whispered, barely moving his lips.

Zuko nodded, knowing it was true, and tried to make himself relax. Assuming an at ease position, he hoped he would pass as a soldier, and kept still. He still itched to stop this abuse, but he knew it was far from the worst thing that happened within these walls.

"I've had it with your unruly behavior," the fire wielding guard continued when the prisoner came to a halt.

"What did I do?" the prisoner asked, tightly controlled anger in his voice.

The guard grinned wickedly. "He wants to know what he did. Isn't that cute?" he asked the closest guard.

Which, as fate would have it, just happened to be Sokka. Zuko raised a brow as the boy gulped. And awkward silence followed, and when the guard spun back around to face Sokka, Zuko knew he had expected an answer. When he flicked up his visor and Sokka still didn't answer, Zuko jumped in. "Ah, very cute sir."

"Super cute," Sokka broke in after him, seeming to finally be able to speak again.

Sokka drooped visibly as soon as attention was off him. _Some master of persuasion, _Zuko scoffed. He thought they couldn't have been more obviously out of place, but the guard smiled haughtily and returned to face the prisoner. "You didn't bow down when I walked by, Chi Tzang."

"What!" the prisoner exclaimed. "That's not a prison rule."

"Do it," the guard demanded, stretching up to put his bearded face intimidatingly close to the man Zuko took to be Chi Tzang.

The man didn't respond, and the guard started snarling. Then, "Make me."

A terrible silence stretched, and Zuko feared for the worst to come. But then the guard smiled, and stepped back from the prisoner. Just when Zuko was thinking maybe he'd let it go, he turned, fire whip returning to his hand, and struck out at the larger man. Zuko was glad Sokka's hand was still holding his forearm, because everything in him wanted to leap forward and stop this insolence. He should be able to remove his helmet and have every guard in this prison drop to his command! But being branded a traitor tended to negate royal prestige. One glance at his scar, and he had no doubt he'd be shown much worse treatment than this Chi Tzang.

Zuko tensed as the fire whip struck, but to his relief, the man called Chi Tzang dropped into a typical firebending stance, open arms held in a wide radius, and caught the fireball. Then his arms shot back out, returning it with equal deadly force against the guard. The firebending guard obviously was no slacker when it came to the fire arts, as he kicked the blast easily aside, extinguishing its flame. He shook his head in mock sorrow, clicking his tongue in reprimand. "Firebending is prohibited. You're going to the cooler." Chi Tzang rose, apparently with no desire to protest, though anger still raged within his eyes. The guard raised a finger to Sokka. "You! Help me take him in."

Zuko felt his throat catch, but Sokka stepped forward easily this time. "Meet me back here in an hour," he said simply, and then ran off to help the angry guard escort the prisoner to this cooler.

Zuko wracked his mind as he recalled what the cooler was. If he remembered right - and it'd been years since he'd cared to think about it - it was a metal cell kept at a freezing, icy temperature. It was impenetrable to any kind of warmth, and was a torturous containment for firebenders who were accustomed to the heat their element brought. Though he supposed for someone like Sokka, who lived on the freezing barren land of snow, it was probably like a reminder of home. Zuko shuddered, and let a breath of fire puff from his mouth, warming his whole body.

He glanced around, almost glad that Sokka had left before real prison life broke loose. Zuko loved his nation, and he was proud of it, but there were certainly some harsh realities, cruelties that went unchecked; and the Boiling Rock was probably the breeding ground for most of it. It was exactly the kind of thing he didn't want anyone from the avatar group to see - especially Katara. She'd hold it over his head for the rest of eternity.

However, when he glanced around, most guards were dispersing back to their positions without much abuse to the prisoners. Sure, some were pushed roughly aside, but for the most part, the guards didn't seem to be causing trouble. And neither did the prisoners. Most, while certainly dirty, weren't nearly as filthy as he'd expected. Many looked proud, and dangerous, but they held their own, messing neither with each other, or their guards. There were even women moving among them, but few were touched by guard or prisoner, and none seemed to be treated any different from the rest of the men.

"Not exactly what you'd expected, new guy?" a voice asked from behind him.

He turned to see a rather large female guard behind him. She quirked an eyebrow, and he realized she was taller than him, and carried the shoulder plates like they were nothing. "Ah, no! Just... trying to get a feel for the place."

"Well then you should probably head down to the lower prisons," she suggested. "Any rumors you've heard about this place being the gateway to hell probably started down there."

"What's the difference?"

"These are the upper cells. People here are more dangerous, of importance, have information, or are some kind of leader. They are under the highest security, so we don't have as much room to mess with them. But they're smarter. They're not just serial killers or captured enemies. These are benders, traitors, ex-military officials, and anyone we find to be particularly dangerous. Some of their followers may be in the lower cells, but we separate them to lesson the chance for escape. You have to be extra careful around these fellows, so if you're looking to pick on someone or get in on some action, head down."

"I see. Ah, thanks for filling me in. So, we're not allowed to pick on these guys?"

"That's right. And they don't tend to turn on each other much. Every once in a while they will - and sometimes we can't even catch 'em at it. But generally they're too smart for that. They banded together into little factions so that they can protect themselves against other prisoners, so we try to keep these groups squabbling among each other as much as possible. Since they all hate us more than each other, we encourage the fighting, so they don't team up. But even their fights are rarely bad. Unlike the low class citizens, who'll kill and hurt each just for fun. These people have pride."

"They don't look proud."

"Well, most have been broken."

"Broken?"

"Their spirits," the lady guard replied. "You really don't know anything, do you? The warden himself questions these prisoners. And whenever high officials want someone questioned, this is where they hold them. Princess Azula herself came here to question one of the prisoners just a few weeks ago."

Zuko's eyes widened. "I didn't know."

He'd been _with_ Azula for the last few weeks - when had she left the palace to come torture these poor souls? And how had he not known? It burned him to his core. How they could have come from the same mother Zuko didn't want to know. It was best for the fates to answer such a question.

"It's true," the guard professed, swelling with pride. "Some earth warrior leader. Apparently the Princess captured her outside Ba Sing Se not too long ago."

Zuko looked around at the prisoners again. Now he could see signs of questioning on them. Before they just hadn't looked as dirty as he'd expected. Few had bruises to speak of, like they would receive under rough prison life, but he noticed many had deep scars and burn marks. Many had cuts around their wrists from shackles, and other showed signs of being in the cooler for too long. All had the same, downtrodden look to them, as if their once proud spirit had been taken away, buried, or lost. They weren't unruly, but they were just as the guard had described them - broken shells of men and women.

"So," he asked, trying to sound casual, "do we have many rebel leaders here?"

"War prisoners and the like are very common, and most of their leaders, benders, or top warriors wind up here. It breaks down the spirit of a group to separate them from each other, and makes escapes less possible. Not that anyone's ever escaped from here," she added with a wicked grin.

Zuko tried to grin back. "Gotta keep up the reputation," he agreed weakly. "Is she the newest war prisoner then? That girl, ah, Princess Azula came to meet, I mean. Or did we get some from the invasion I heard about?"

"Invasion?" the woman asked.

"Yeah, I heard something about the Avatar leading a bunch of rebels on an attack of the fire nation just recently. It failed, of course," he added, putting his best haughty voice on, "but I heard we captured a bunch of their leaders alive. If we get one, maybe someone important will come to question them," he added, trying to sound hopeful.

The guard smiled, less suspicious. "Don't worry, rookie, you'll get your chance to see the Princess if you stick around long enough. We don't have any of those prisoners yet, but she does come by about once a year. If prison life suits you, you'll see her eventually. Or maybe one of the other officials who come around for information."

Zuko sighed inwardly. They weren't expecting Azula soon, but neither did they have anyone from the invasion. _No new war prisoners means that Sokka's dad probably isn't here._ Zuko glanced at the sun. He still had about forty minutes until he had agreed to meet Sokka. Snooping around for a second report shouldn't take too long. And if Zuko could be sure that their father wasn't here, then maybe they could abandon this futile mission and get out of here - somehow - before getting caught. Every minute here was dangerous, for all of them.

"Thanks for the information," he saluted the woman. "Where do we go to relax and get a bite to eat? I'm tired of seeing prisoners everywhere I look."

"Up those stairs, down the hall and to your left. There's a lounge area there where we all hang out. My shift is almost over - I'll walk you."

Not sure how to avoid it, Zuko agreed. Moments after he did, a new guard came to relieve her, and the woman led the way up to the lounge. There she pulled off her helmet and kicked back to join some friends in a corner. Zuko bid her farewell and went to get some food, trying not to look suspicious. Eating at least gave him something casual to do.

"Hey new guy!" a voice called, causing Zuko's heart to jump into his throat. "I know it's the rule to have your helmet on at all times, but this is the lounge. Relax."

"But..." Zuko stalled, "what if there's an incident?" If he took off his helmet, they'd see his scar. "If I'm not prepared, someone could strike me in the head." And if they saw the scar, it was only a matter of time before they'd put two and two together.

He held his breath.

The guards laughed, slapping the table as if he'd made a good joke. He breathed again.

"Give him a week," the female at the table chuckled. "He'll loosen up."

_This is good,_ Zuko forced himself to think positively. _I've started a conversation..._ He sat down casually in the seat beside them, feeling more at home with soldiers who didn't know him than he ever had with the ones who had. "Can the new guy ask you veterans a few questions?" he asked, feeding their ego.

"No," the girl responded sarcastically, "you can't date the female guards."

"Trust me," the man who'd called to him first whispered loudly. "You don't want to."

The first man's friend chuckled as the girl hit him in the face with a well aimed cup.

"No," Zuko insisted, wondering when he'd ever get the hang of this pointless humor everyone else in the world seemed to enjoy. "That's not it. The Boiling Rock. It holds the nation's most dangerous prisoners, right?" The guards nodded. "So, what about war prisoners?"

"Well, we get them in sometimes," the last man spoke, "but I haven't seen any come through in a while."

"So no one from the latest invasion attempt?"

"I heard about that," the woman chipped in. "A bunch of backwards rebel idiots tried to attack the capital! Even with the avatar, they got their butts handed to them by the imperial guard."

"Yeah, something like that."

"We haven't got anyone in from that yet," the first man considered. "Maybe we will, but not yet. Why do you ask?"

"No reason really," Zuko insisted. "I just heard there were waterbenders with them. I've, ah... never met one."

"Never met a waterbender, huh kid?" the first man asked, and Zuko shook his head.

"Neither have you," the second man pointed out.

"I hear," the woman whispered, "that they live in huts, like peasants. They don't even have real buildings - just icy walls covered in animal hides."

Zuko remembered his trip to the South Pole, where he'd first laid eyes on Katara, Sokka and Aang. Their village had been made of ice and snow and skins, so the statement was generally true, but it hadn't seemed nearly as disgusting as the way the soldiers were describing it now. Naturally, it was foreign, but it had possessed a strange kind of... frozen beauty. Zuko had never seen people who lived so closely linked with nature before. It was primal, certainly, but not horrid. And then there was the North Pole...

"Sound like savages to me," the first man agreed, pulling Zuko back to the present. "Maybe we will get to see one. If they really were part of that invasion attempt, it's possible that we'd get one of them in here eventually."

"Now that would be something to see," the second man put in. "I heard they have devilish blue eyes. Can you believe that? Blue eyes. They must be pale as ghosts."

"Hardly," Zuko scoffed. They glanced at him in confusion. "I mean... I heard they were very dark," he supplied, picturing Katara in his mind. "But they do have blue eyes," he added, seeing hers flash in his mind. _Take care of him..._ "Ah, from what I heard."

"Haha, if we're talking about rumors," the first man grinned, "I heard they skin wolves and dress in their bloody hides, painting their faces so they look like monstrous animals. And at the full moon, they swim naked in the frozen waters of the poles."

Zuko remembered his own swim in the frozen waters at the North Pole. He doubted anyone, even a waterbender, could survive swimming in that naked, full moon or not. Unbidden, an image filled his mind. Before he could stop it, he saw Katara in her undergarments, water running off her dark skin, her blue eyes blazing beneath the moonlight. _Maybe it wouldn't be so horrible if they did,_ Zuko pondered.

"You okay, kid?" the woman asked. "You're turning red."

"Oh, ah, sorry. It's kind of hot with this helmet on," he added, feeling his cheeks flush even more. _Katara_ had made him blush? Absurd! But now that he had thought of it, his mind kept returning to her... "Ah! I'm going to, ah, step outside for some fresh air. Thanks for the chat!"

"Watch out for waterbenders!" the first man called hauntingly as the woman slapped him in the back of the head.

"Yeah," Zuko muttered. "Right."

* * *

By the time his hour was up, Zuko was sure. Niether Sokka's dad, nor any one else water tribe, were to be found in the Boiling Rock today. The trip had been a waste. But, as soon as he found Sokka and reported back, they could get out of there before things got any worse.

Scanning the bridge area above the upper prisoners' hold, Zuko's eyes finally found a solider resting on the rail who was far too dark, and too small to be a fire nation guard. Moving over cautiously he addressed the preoccupied warrior. "Hey there, ah, fellow guard," Zuko stared carefully, rubbing his head. "How goes it?"

His companion stirred and lifted his visor in excitement, revealing Sokka's goofy grin and sharp blue eyes. "Zuko?"

"Shhh!" Zuko hissed. "Don't use my name! Did you find anything?" he asked, hoping he wouldn't have to break the news.

"No, nothing about Dad. But I met the Warden."

"The Warden!"

"Yeah, and man, is he a stiff!" Sokka declared. "He said he'd rather jump in the boiling lake himself than have even one prisoner escape from here. Something about a record..."

"Listen," Zuko admitted, cutting him off. "I asked around the lounge. There are no water tribe prisoners." He lifted his visor. "I'm afraid your father's not here."

"What?" Sokka's face looked shocked. "Are you sure?" he begged. "Did you double check?"

"Yeah," Zuko sighed. "I'm sure."

"No..."

Sokka seemed so disappointed. He grabbed his head and slunk to the side, facing the wall. Zuko couldn't really say he understood the boy's relationship with his father - he had no real background to go on in that area - but he did know what it was like to be disappointed. He'd felt that all to often.

"No!" Sokka growled again, banging his fists on the wall.

"I'm really sorry Sokka." He wished he knew what to say at times like these.

"So, we came all this way for nothing?" the boy demanded. "I failed." He dropped back against the wall in defeat. "Again."

"Ahh," Zuko sighed to himself at his uselessness. "What would Uncle say..." He rubbed his chin as he glanced up at the clouds. "Sometimes... clouds have two sides," he started, wondering vaguely where this would end. "A dark, and light. And... a sliver lining in between. It's like a silver sandwich! So... when life seems hard... take a bite out of the silver sandwich?"

"Maybe we haven't failed after all!" Sokka cried, startling Zuko as he thumped into the rail beside the prince, his eyes alight.

Zuko grinned slightly. "That's the spirit! I can't believe that worked... I didn't even know what I was saying..."

"No," Sokka denied. "What you said made no sense. But look!" He pointed enthusiastically down at the prisoners in the upper holding area. "Suki!"

As the bell started tolling for the prisoners to return to their cells, Zuko saw the girl Sokka was jabbing his finger at - a striking young woman with red lips and short hair. She looked vaguely familiar, but Zuko couldn't place her. When he turned back to Sokka he could have sworn hearts were pulsing in the boy's eyes. Without a word, the boy slammed his visor down and took off down the stairs. Zuko's suspicious gaze turned into one of shock as he slammed down his own visor and took off after the lovestruck boy.

"Who's Suki?" he called pointlessly after Sokka's receding back.

* * *

"Look, just guard the door for a few minutes," Sokka begged.

"This is dangerous," Zuko hesitated.

"Why? You're a guard. What's dangerous about guarding a door?"

"These prisoners are high security," Zuko explained. "The guards don't mess around here. Someone could get suspicious."

"Well, if someone comes, just make something up," Sokka insisted jovially, unbolting the door.

"Yeah, because we all know how good I am at that..." the prince muttered sarcastically, folding his arms. Before he knew it Sokka darted inside. "Sokka! ...ugh!" Zuko grinded through his teeth as the door closed behind the goofy warrior, and Zuko had no choice but to take an at ease position beside the door, and hope for the best; either that he looked natural, or better yet, that no one came by.

Moments after Sokka slipped inside, Zuko jumped at a loud clang against the door. Someone's body must have slammed up against it. He was about to open the door and charge in when he heard the girl's voice call Sokka's name horsely, and thought better of it. He heard their damped voices through the thick door again after that, and then nothing, which he was grateful for. His imagination was enough. By this time, he was pretty positive the two were hooked up. _Well, at least he's finally getting over that moon girl. _Even Zuko had the courtesy to let the two have their moment.

Then movement on the stairs caught his eye. A guard was coming up to do her rounds. He tapped discretely on the cell door, praying Sokka would get the signal, and tried to look like he belonged there. Unfortunately for him, the guard made right for him, stopping beside the cell. Zuko stepped in front of her, and she raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me," she said in a commanding voice. "I need to get into that cell."

"No! You can't go in there." Zuko's mind stretched ridiculously for an excuse, anything to stall her. "The, ah... lights are out?" he ended weakly. "The prisoner could sneak up on you."

Her lips twisted. "Step aside fool," she ordered, pushing him out of her way.

Zuko gave up. _I never was much of the diplomat anyway,_ he realized. _Oh well, back to basics._

Using her momentum, he grabbed onto the arm she'd used to push him and twisted it quickly, pinning her up against the wall in a classic holding move. "Hey, hey!" she shouted as her helmet hit the door. "What are you doing?"

She twisted lithely out of his grasp, and the next thing he knew, his face was the one plastered to the door, staring through the small cell window. He could just barely make out Sokka with his bad eye as the boy pulled on his helmet in confusion. Then he rolled and his struggle with the infernally strong woman began again. _What are they feeding these female guards!_ Zuko wondered as he struggled against her. _I think they're worse than the men - can't say I'm surprised though,_ he added with a backwards thought that conjured up the image of an aggravated, young, dark skinned, blue eyed waterbender they'd left on the shore.

He heard the cell door open and close, and knew Sokka had slipped out behind him. "Guard!" the woman called. "Help! I think he's an impostor!" She grunted as Zuko finally managed trip her. "Arrest him!" she demanded of Sokka.

_Haha, we got her! _Zuko triumphed as she dropped towards the ground.

But she managed to save face and stop her fall. "Get him off me!" she demanded of Sokka again. "And arrest him!"

"Yeah right," Zuko grinned as her fingers snaked up to his face, shoving against his chin.

Suddenly someone yanked his arm, pulling him off balance and slamming him into the metal floor. He grunted in pain as he realized he was pinned to the ground. "You're under arrest," Sokka's voice declared.


	6. Chapter 6:Surrender

Author's note:

_artsyelric: let the zutara begin!!_

_oh, and trombe, time to show your skills! readers, i'm so proud of myself for actually coming up with the whole escape attempt thing on my own! i had this super cool like, escape/fight scene thing planned out in my head, but i know trombe is super good at battles and such, and i don't really know how mine came out... but that's the beauty of co-writing! so, my dear trombe, i surrender it to you! have at it, oh master of action! (make me look cool 'wink wink')  
_

**Trombe: This one wasn't so bad. Finally time for some real diversion from the boiling rock episode.**

_artsyelric: yey, trombe complemented me! horray! sorry this chapter took so long, but it's finished now, and it's long! enjoy! we're finally giving you some real zutara action, and between the two of us, an epic fight scene!  
_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 6: Surrender**

* * *

Panic and rage shot through Zuko as Sokka pinned him to the floor, calling for his arrest. Somewhere in the back of his mind Zuko hadn't fully buried the notion that he was untrusted, but he certainly had not expected Sokka to attack him now, after all they had said and done. Zuko thought Sokka knew better by now, knew _him _better. They'd been getting along so well. Or so Zuko had surmised... If Sokka turned him in now, in the middle of the Boiling Rock-

But his thoughts were cut short as Sokka whispered harshly in his good ear. "Don't worry. I'll figure it out. Play along."

Zuko's tense muscles visibly relaxed. For a second there he had assumed Sokka was the vengeful type, just waiting for the right moment to strike back at him. A hint of shame swept over Zuko temporarily for doubting his newfound comrade. Sokka was no Azula. But then reality sunk in. _Wait, he'll figure it out? _Zuko groaned, hoping the guard would take it as pain from hitting the ground.

_I'm doomed._

Another guard appeared around the corner. "What's all the noise?"

"This guard is an impostor!" the woman accused. "He assaulted me in the hallway!"

"Maybe he's just stupid," Sokka chimed in.

"One way to find out," the new guard decided, reaching for Zuko's helmet.

This was bad.

Zuko's eyes locked on Sokka's. The disguised water tribe warrior mouthed one word. _Run._

Zuko held his breath as the man's hand closed around his visor and pulled.

The helmet clattered to the ground with a ring like a death-sentence. Voices gasped simultaneously around him. "Is that... PRINCE ZUKO!" the male guard bellowed. "THE TRAITOR PRINCE ZUKO- AUGH!" With no hesitation Zuko unleashed a breath of fire straight into the startled man's face.

He spun and slammed an open palm into Sokka's side, knocking him - almost full force - into the wall and letting him drop, winded; Sokka played his part and stayed down.

The woman launched a wide kick aimed at his head. Zuko barely saw the movement in time, cursing the small blind spot his burnt eye possessed, but he did managed to duck under it. He caught the guard's foot with ease, and spun it, throwing her to the ground. _Finally! _Zuko felt a surge of triumph as the annoying woman hit the deck hard.

"What's going on?" a voice came from the end of the hall.

"Sound the alarm!" the woman shouted. "It's the renegade prince! Capture him!"

Too late, Zuko saw the man's hand close around at bell at the top of the stairs. He tugged on it, and the hall filled with the ominous tolling.

Zuko felt his heart pound in his throat.

Within seconds, soldiers were pouring into the hallway with fire at their fingertips. Zuko knew he had to break away or be overrun by all of them. As confident as he was with his fighting abilities he knew his limits. He threw himself over the rail and slammed into the open area two stories down, rolling as he hit the ground. He didn't even brake stride however, as he got up as quickly and ran across the open space. His footsteps echoed against the metallic surface as he searched for an escape.

An opening that led to the outside caught his eye. When he'd been disguised as a guard, Zuko had spent time surveying the area. He'd kept track of the many different hallways and levels the prison had. While the guards here might be hot on his tail, he knew it would take a while for everyone else in the giant prison to figure out what was happening. If he could get out of the guards line of vision, maybe he could blend in with the confusion and get outside. He still looked like a guard; maybe it would buy him time.

Making up his mind, he sprinted for the opening, dodging fire blasts from the guards on the higher levels, and blocking with his own fire when he couldn't evade. He slipped into the doorway and found himself in a hall, which ran down into a T with a crossing hall.

Two guards came rushing around the corner, and one sent a fireball down the hall at him, already forming a second. Zuko caught the first in an open hand and returned the flaming volley with a roundhouse kick, making an explosion in the middle of the hall as the two blasts collided. As the guards coughed in the dust, Zuko plowed into them, knocking the first off his feet and slamming him into the wall. Zuko used the full weight of his running body to barrel the guy over so that the light armor wouldn't be enough to cushion the impact. The man grunted and slid to the ground.

Zuko twisted and caught the second guards arm, knowing he had only seconds until more came in from behind him. He twisted the arm, forcing the guard's fireblast to pass to the side harmlessly as it scorched the metallic surface, and pulled his helmet off, a move that felt very reminiscent of Aang. Then Zuko slammed the guard's head into the rock wall, and dropped the man's helmet over his own head just as the first few guards came down the hallway he'd just fought through. Zuko grabbed his side as if hurt, and leaned on the wall. The guards hesitated as they approached, but Zuko raised his finger and pointed the opposite way down the hall. "He went that way," he gasped, and the guards turned on a dime, running down the hall.

Zuko spun and ran the other way as fast as his tired feet would carry him.

At the end of the hall he burst out of the restricted section. "What's going on?" a guard demanded. "We're in lock down!"

"I heard there's an impostor!" Zuko yelled, pointing angrily behind him. "He made for the east gate!"

"I'll warn the others, you find the Warden!"

"Right!" Zuko acknowledged, turning to leave.

This was going smoother than he had hoped. The wall at the edge of the fortress was just before him. If he could slip off it, maybe he could get away unnoticed. While they searched all the guards, he could find Katara and get off this infernal island. Or at least find somewhere to hide for a while. He started moving quickly towards the wall, hoping he didn't look out of place.

The guard he had spoken to leaned towards a large metal pipe to convey the message to the opposite side of the prison. Guards were rushing up the stairs behind him, trying to see what the commotion was. Zuko noticed the stairs led down into the outdoors area for the prisoners as he passed, and that it was a good fall. He was almost past the top of the stairs at the same time they were reaching it. Just when he thought he was in the clear, the doors to the high security section opened and a bunch of guards charged out. "It's Prince Zuko!" one of them yelled. "He went this way!"

Suddenly one of the guards coming up the stairs bumped him, and Zuko's helmet went tumbling. "Sorry," the guard barked roughly as Zuko dove for the helmet.

But it was too late. "There he is!" a guard shouted.

"Get him! That's Zuko right there!"

Cursing, Zuko turned and shot fire down the stairs. The startled men climbing it struggled not to fall or be burned, but he didn't waist any time watching. He made a dash for the wall.

"That's him, arrest him!"

Something struck him in the shoulder and he winced as he saw an arrow bounce off the stone beside him, a thin cut appearing above his bicep. _Archers! _he realized. Panic surged through the fire prince as he scouted around for the source of the arrow's flight. Two men on the opposite tower dressed in the usual garb of the guards were rushing notching arrows into their bowstrings. A small relief came over him. They were just regular foot archers. Zuko was in no hurry to face the Archers of Yu Yan a second time.

"Stop!" a voice boomed. Everyone glanced up as a gray haired man with a deep scowl appeared on the far side of guard tower. If Sokka's description was right, this was him. The Warden. "The Fire Lord wants him alive!"

"Sir!" Everyone barked, and the archers withdrew.

Zuko seized his chance and ran for the wall. If he could just get safely over it somehow...

But before he had the chance, the wall filled itself with soldiers. They came from both directions, a wall of red steel blocking his escape. The ones behind him surged forward with a triumphant cry, and Zuko knew there was no escaping now. But stubbornness and pride told him to try anyway.

Bracing himself he ran right towards the crowd, startling the advancing guards. Leaping straight up on the guards' shoulders he quickly made his way through, jumping on one guard to the other, always a step ahead as the guards grasped only air where Zuko was once. Before he knew it they were behind him as he made a break for it. Using his momentum he ran up along the side of the wall before jumping onto a set of stairs, retracing his steps back into the second level.

He ran straight towards one of the guard towers hoping to at least immobilize the archers. While they understood their orders well, Zuko was not about to take any chances with them; they might decide that a dead fire prince was the same as one captured alive. One panicked and fired a clumsy shot, bouncing off the wall to Zuko's left. Another one aimed right for his heart. But before he could release the arrow Zuko had leaped with fury, spinning in the air before connecting his right foot with the archer's jaw, sending the poor bastard whirling away before hitting the ground hard.

But by now, his muscles ached. His breathing was shallow and hard. Zuko was getting tired. The adrenaline rush he experienced was waning. More and more guards flocked to his location, like a pack of hungry condor-jackals sensing a weary lone wolf-bat.

Looking to the side of the tower Zuko gaged the distance to the ground. The bottom loomed up at him, so far below. There was no way he was going to make it jumping this high up. Even if he did, he was sure he was not going to come out of it in any position to run, so he'd be caught anyway.

Zuko's anger swelled within him as a small part of him still refused to give in, refused to surrender. He tightened his knuckles so hard they turned white, like the white hot rage stirring inside him.

But fighting now would definitely mean the end of him. Death had no meaning for the former fire prince but dying now would not bring back the honor his people had lost. For their sake and that of the Avatar... he knew he had to make a choice.

He must live.

No, there would be no more running now.

Slowly he pulled his hands up over his head in shame, and surrendered.

The first guard reached him and knocked him to the ground. Zuko knew this game well, and it was time to quit while he still had his pride. Fighting now would just make it worse.

He had lost. It was over.

Suddenly a tidal wave of steaming hot water rushed across the guards between Zuko and his escape. Many cried out as the boiling water burned them, or as they were washed off and fell three stories to the open area below. The way to the wall was clear.

Katara skidded in gracefully , riding on her water wave, stopping where the guards had been moments before. She lifted an eyebrow triumphantly at a gaping Zuko as she pulled water up around her arms.

The guards stopped, horrified, not knowing what to do in the situation. The training they had been vigorously versed and drilled in covered all the aspects of a possible break out. It didn't say anything about a break in. Much less from an exiled firebending prince and a master waterbender.

Then that voice, stern and hard, which Zuko was now sure belonged to the Warden, echoed from the pipe communication system.

"The girl is nothing. Kill her."

* * *

Katara finished scouting the area. The boys had been gone most of the day now, and she was growing bored. She knew where openings in the security were, where it was safe to sneak off the island, where they could scale the wall outside the prison, and where it was steep. She'd found a small outlet that was cave like where she'd hidden Sokka's meteorite sword and Zuko's Dao blades. And then she'd waited.

And waited.

And waited...

Katara considered herself a pretty patient person, but she was getting worried. _It can't hurt if I just climb up somewhere where I can see everything. If I see them, I'll feel much better, and I already know where I can go up unnoticed. I may as well test it out,_ she reasoned.

Convinced, she froze water up the side of the wall where she knew it was safe and began scaling it quickly and quietly, her hands gripping the slippery ice with exceptional control. But when she got to the top, she hesitated. _This could be stupid. They told me to wait... I can always do this at night, if they're not back..._

But before she could make up her mind, an alarm started sounding. Katara gasped and almost fell as she was so startled. Then she froze, afraid they'd seen her. She waited for quite a while, but when no one came kill her, she concluded the alarm wasn't set off because of her. Which meant... _Sokka!_

Creating two sturdy footholds, she plucked up her courage and peeked over the edge of the wall. People were running all over the stone landing. A huge building lay to her right, and a guard came running out of it, pointing to the east. The stone walkway ran all the way around the wall, but it dropped out in the middle, and a set of stairs clanged as a bunch of guards came running up. Katara ducked as a bunch of archers appeared on the roof.

Suddenly there was a ton of shouting. Guards were yelling, and the sound of feet thundered past her. Guards were lining up on the wall, mere feet above her. She hung on the side of the wall, breathing hard, but when she glanced up, their backs were to her, facing in. She lifted her head slowly over the wall, and finally the guards yells sunk in.

"Get him! That's Zuko right there!"

"That's him, arrest him!"

She peeked over the edge and saw Zuko, surrounded on all sides by guards. He stumbled as an arrow scraped past his arm, cutting his sleeve, and glanced desperately towards the wall. Katara didn't see Sokka anywhere.

"Stop!" a voice shouted. "The Fire Lord wants him alive!"

The archers lowered their bows, and the guards charged forward triumphantly as the soldiers on the wall blocked his escape. Zuko seemed to wilt when he saw them. _Fight!_ Katara prayed as her eyes locked on Zuko. _Come on, do something!_

As if on cue she saw the prince sprint head on against his adversaries, jumping onto the human tidal wave and basically running on top of them.

She held in the urge to cheer as she continued to watch Zuko's daring escape, not even noticing how odd it was to be cheering for the man who used to be her most hated enemy. She saw for the very first time how graceful and lithely the prince moved. She never really had a chance to see it before, but watching the prince darting left and right, avoiding a guard here and there, was like seeing a beautiful dance in action. A deadly dance, to be sure, but nevertheless a dance. Her father once told Sokka that warriors shone the brightest when their backs were against the wall. When they were tested to the point of breaking. She finally understood what he meant now, watching Zuko.

While she didn't trust the brooding young firebender, it certainly didn't deter her opinion on his fighting skills. She was... impressed. Catching herself, Katara looked around as if afraid someone could hear her thoughts. She'd rather die then let Prince Zuko know she was impressed by him.

She lost sight of Zuko for a moment as he entered a guard tower. Guards were still pouring from every direction. Finally he came out without a scratch on his person. But she noticed the weary state he was in. His chest was heaving, and his eyes darted around, almost hopelessly. Katara had fought the prince enough to know that he was done. There were no more tricks up his sleeve; he wasn't going to fight anymore.

_He's giving up! _she realized. _How unlike him! _Zuko's determination to capture the Avatar had bordered on insanity, but if there was anything even a bit noble about that, it was that the prince showed no fear nor hesitation. He was tenacious and unwavering.

Yet she found none of that now. He was clearly worn out, and worse, he'd given up.

The first guard reached him and slammed his joined fists into Zuko's shoulders, knocking the prince to the ground.

As he smashed into the rocky floor, Katara scowled. He wasn't even trying! It was disgraceful! Katara felt her anger rising.

She glanced down at the lake and made her decision. _Fine, if _he_ won't fight, then I'll show them what a waterbender can do!_

Breathing deeply, she gathered as much water from the lake as she could, and with a mighty sweep, she brought it up, as high as she could, and let it crash over the wall onto the soldiers. She flung herself over the wall, and slid to a stop, her eyes locking on Zuko's. _Get up! _she thought desperately, pulling water up around her arms and readying for a fight. She might hate him, but they had come here together, and she was not about to abandon him. That was only one step shy of betrayal in her book.

"What are you doing?" she yelled to Zuko. "Get up!"

To her surprise, he did. For a second, his eyes flicked to her left, over her shoulder, and determination set back in them. He launched himself to his feet and started running straight towards her.

At first she was almost pleased to see him up and moving, but she realized quickly it wasn't a complete success. Before she could figure out what was happening, Zuko slammed into her. She gasped and cried out as her back hit the edge of the wall, hard, Zuko's body driving into her. She was sure her back was bruised, and she was having trouble sucking in a breath in the aftershock.

Dimly, she was aware of Zuko shouting out too, a sharp sound, like he'd been hit. Which was odd, as she was the one being crushed by his giant form. "What on earth," she gasped.

Fire shot at them. Katara quickly pushed Zuko to her side, freeing an arm to wave water before them like a shield. The fire exploded against it, and they could feel the force. There was barely room to breath. The next blast hit, and the next, and Katara could barely keep the water moving fast enough to protect their rapidly dwindling space. "They're too fast," she shouted, pressing farther back against the wall, Zuko still clinging to her left arm heavily.

Then one broke through her shield, the impact throwing her into Zuko and making her lose her balance. He blocked the next blast with a fireball of his own, but the impending explosion tipped the teetering duo over the wall.

Katara cried out as they fell towards the hard dirt below, but she was too far away to reach the wall or grab anything to slow her fall. The only solid thing in her world was Zuko's hand on her forearm.

They were almost to the ground when she felt him shift his weight. In a heartbeat, his arms were around her, and she was flat against his chest. He was solid, and he pulled her tightly to him as he rolled them sideways in the air.

And then the impact came.

Everything was thrown in every direction. Up was confused with down, and she knew, somehow, that she was bouncing.

Finally she came to a stop. She struggled to move, to lift a limb. Everything hurt. But nothing was truly painful, just aching. She knew that moving was urgent, even if she couldn't form the thoughts coherently, and she finally managed to get her arms under her and push herself up. Her eyes opened. _Mud... We landed in mud. Probably from my waterbending. And I'm okay. I didn't hit the ground, because Zuko... Zuko!_

She found his body, just up the slope a little from hers. His arm lay across his body at an odd angle, and blood was seeping from his head. Somehow, he had twisted them at the last minute so she landed on top of him, taking the brunt of the fall himself. She crawled up to him, and remembered him crying out as he barreled into her. The reason was suddenly clear. A feathered arrow stuck out from his side. _He was saving me... _she realized.

Even though her head felt clouded, she quickly pulled water from the mud and lay her healing hands on his head. The bleeding stopped and he stirred. "Ahh," he moaned, coming to.

His eyes locked hazily on hers, and suddenly he recognized her. He pulled away with a shout. "What are you doing- ah!" His protest was cut off as he winced in pain.

"Trying to heal you! We're on the same side, remember? Hold still now, they're coming."

"We're not going to get away," he whispered hoarsely to her. "Do you have somewhere to hide?"

"For a while."

"Then leave me and go. Sokka will come for you - and this time, _stay there."_

"And leave you here to be captured? I don't think so!" she vented. "You've been shot! And I twisted my ankle anyway," she added, pointing to the swelling foot. "Now hold still!" Zuko groaned as she grabbed the arrow. "It went through," she diagnosed. "But it's not deep."

"Don't- Ah! ...don't touch it!" He ground his teeth in pain, batting at her prodding fingers.

"There they are!" a voice yelled.

"They're coming," Zuko said, pushing her aside. "You have to run!"

"Run where?! We're on a small piece of island in the middle of a boiling lake!" She stood up, wincing as she put weight on her ankle, and drew water to her arms. "We should at least fight."

Zuko grabbed her arm fiercely, his fingers sinking thought her water barrier. "It'll make it worse! Listen to me, and run. You don't know what they'll do to someone like you in there."

Katara turned to him as more guards streamed over the muddy ground. She was fully expecting to see him glaring, assuming she was weak because she was a waterbender, or a girl. He must think so highly of these firebending guards and his great prison. But when she met his eyes, they weren't what she expected. They were worried, and pleading. They were caring.

Soldiers streamed around them, cutting off all sides, even the boiling lake and the wall. None had weapons, but they were all ready, all assumed their firebending stances. There was no where to run.

She should be fighting. She should be tearing them to shreds. She should be battling with everything in her, and trying to live.

But all she could do was stare into Zuko's gaze.

Finally, her hands dropped, and the water fell from them. She sank to her knees beside him as his hand tightened on her wrist. "We surrender," he said loudly. "We'll go peacefully."

"Get them!"

Katara felt hands grabbing her, and tasted a face full of mud. She was pulled roughly back to her knees, held down tightly by someone behind her. Another person pried her mouth open, their fingers smashing roughly into her cheeks, forcing her jaw open. "What's that!" she heard Zuko shouting. "What are you doing to her!" and then he grunted harshly, and Katara knew someone must have hit him, even though she couldn't turn her head.

"It's a drug," someone answered, as Katara struggled not to swallow. "Everyone knows what a desperate waterbender can do. We're just taking extra precautions and making sure she's in no condition to bend at all."

"We should just kill her now," someone else said.

"Swallow it girl," the man in front of her commanded, holding her nose as she struggled.

"The Warden decides who lives and who dies," one of the voices growled.

"The Warden said kill her."

"He said we could," the man in front of her pointed out. "If he wants her dead, he can kill her any time. Better if we take her alive." His eyes narrowed, and he shook her head. "But I will beat you senseless, girl, if you don't swallow!" Katara glared at him resolutely; she'd rather suffocate than comply with these monsters.

"Swallow it, Katara," Zuko grunted from somewhere beside her. "It won't kill you. But they will."

"You should listen to your traitorous friend there," the man agreed. But to no avail. Katara's ice blue eyes were unwavering as she stared them down. He sighed. "Fine," he spat, wrenching her head around so that she could see Zuko. "We do this the hard way."

A guard was holding Zuko up by the elbows, which were clamped together tightly behind his back, forcing his shoulders up and holding him in an awkward kneeling position. A second guard stood resolutely on his legs. Blood was soaking slowly down his side, and one of the men reached out and grabbed the arrow shaft jutting from his wound. Zuko cried out as the man yanked it backwards abruptly so the tip was flush with his back again. The yell felt like daggers in Katara's throbbing head, and somehow worse in her aching heart.

"You look like someone who cares more about her friends than herself," the man smiled. "I've seen your type before. So swallow, or things will just get worse for Prince Zuko."

Somehow, Zuko found the strength the grin. "You guys are wasting your time," he laughed weakly, almost incoherently, his eyes staring at the ground. "She wants me dead more than you."

"I think you underestimate her, Prince," the man replied. "She swallowed."

Zuko's eyes opened wide with surprise. Lifting his head he looked at the defeated waterbender with disbelief.

Katara felt tears run down her cheeks, as her world slowly went black.

She wondered, dimly, if Aang would be okay without her...


	7. Chapter 7:Cell Mates

Author's note:

_artsyelric: ah, so reminiscent of crossroads of destiny, but with such a more maniacal... twist, muwahaha. i originally wrote this much tamer, but trombe decided to spice it up - we couldn't resist! what screams zutara more than a drugged katara, and an injured zuko chained to a chair? haha! well, you owe the sweet dialog to me, and the kinky situation to the big guy behind our zuko! don't have a heart attack! it's still kid-friendly XDDD  
_

**Trombe: Your dialog? I had to reword majority of yours just to make it flow better.  
**

_artsyelric: haha, true, but i meant the cutsey dialog, trombe. didn't think you wanted to claim that. after all, i did the whole hair thing! even you thought that was good! ('pouting'__ you never give me anything...) -well (somehow) between the two of us, hopefully it's good! _

**Trombe: But anyway readers please do enjoy the next installment of this rising zutara fic.**

_artysleirc: __i'll shut up and let you read now..._

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 7: Cell Mates  
**

* * *

Katara's eyes flitted open. She blinked, but realized it made no difference. It was so dark.

Every muscle in her body ached, brimming with pain, like she'd been hit by a rockalanche, though nothing felt seriously wrong with her. She knew her eyes were open, yet the world seemed groggy and dim, as if she was seeing everything through stained glass. She tried to stand, but found her limbs moved like they belonged to someone else, her muscles not responding at all.

"You're awake," a voice called kindly.

"Aang?"

"Hardly," the voice answered, stiff and humorless. A breath of fire puffed out, and Katara saw Zuko's scared face for a second through the gloom before the flame died down and the veil of darkness returned. "Sorry to disappoint you. Though I suppose it's a good thing in the long run he's not here..."

Katara rubbed her temple as she sat up, struggling to remember how she'd gotten here. "We were captured..." She remembered groggily. The waterbender winced as she tried to stand once more in a futile attempt before giving up. Her ankle wasn't serious, but it added to her unbalanced feeling. "Is Sokka here?" she asked.

"No," Zuko curtly replied. "He's still got his cover, as a guard. Maybe he can help us. He said he'd figure it out, whatever that means."

"How long have I been out?"

"A few hours," Zuko guessed. "It's hard to tell in here." Suddenly, he coughed harshly, his body moving oddly as he did.

Katara's eyes were adjusting in the dark, and she was slowly beginning to make out the fire prince's weary form.

Her blue eyes blinked as she realized he was bound to a metal chair, cuffed hand and foot, his head hanging heavily. Katara could only assume they must be holding him there to prevent him from any firebending. "...Are ...are you alright?" she whispered.

Air wheezed out of his mouth as he laughed. "Heh heh heh... funny you should ask that. I thought these chains and the coughing would be dead giveaways." Zuko answered sarcastically, without lifting his head.

Katara glared at him, but she just didn't have the energy to be mad. Maybe it was the desperateness of their situation, or maybe the fact that he was so helpless, or most likely it was just the effects of the drug, but she didn't want to fight with the closest thing she had to a friend right now. First, live, then kill Zuko.

Getting some feeling back in her legs Katara desperately tried to push her half-dead body towards the prince, stopping only a few feet away from him as she leaned her back against the wall beside the chair. "So, what now?" she worriedly asked. She had never imagined herself to be in such a situation such as this yet here they were. She didn't want to know what lay in store for the both of them next. "What do we do?"

"What else is there to do?" Zuko pointed out calmly, coughing at the end. "Nothing but to wait... wait till the Warden decides to see us," he provided, noting her confused look. "I suppose locking both you and I together in the same cell is his idea of some sort of torture. Let us see how badly the other is doing." He glanced at Katara sideways from his bad eye. "When he comes try to not make him mad."

"Still afraid he'll decide to kill me?" she asked dispassionately.

"Yes."

Katara was surprised. She wasn't sure if that straightforward remark was serious, sarcastic, or maybe even worried. Her brain was too foggy, and Zuko was so... aloof. With nothing else left to say the two stayed in the dark as the minutes passed by, only to be interrupted by a groan from Zuko as he shifted in his chair.

Katara looked up and spotted a pained look upon the prince's face before glancing at a dark red damp mark on his side.

"The arrow-" Katara realized.

"They pulled it out," Zuko reported, his face grim. Katara couldn't imagine that had been a pleasant experience. "But I think it's still bleeding."

Fighting against her groggy state and cramping muscles Katara found the will to push herself up and crawled her way towards Zuko. It took her whole will and concentration to try and not vomit or fall down as she tried desperately to shake off the drug's effects. She knelt facing the bound firebender, and her hands, though shaking, made their way up to feel the wound.

"Let me see," she commanded, pulling his shirt up revealing a horrible wound that bled an angry red. "Well, it was a clean pull at least," she deduced. "But it needs to be bandaged, and more." She wiped her hand across her sweating forehead, hoping to bend some of the water there, but none moved with her motion the way it should. She struggled against her groggy self one more time before giving up. "I still can't even think straight, let alone bend," she fretted, rubbing her head tiredly.

"It's pointless. There's no water in here anyway," Zuko said.

"Shows what you know," Katara humphed.

But she knew Zuko was right. She couldn't rely on her bending for now. But that didn't mean she couldn't help him. She had been a healer first in the Southern Water tribe, long before she was a master waterbender, so she knew there were other ways to heal besides bending.

Katara ripped a strip off her water tribe clothes with her teeth. The tearing sound echoed in the small room. Clumsily, the blue-eyed waterbender began to dress and tend the wound.

"What are you doing?" Zuko asked earnestly. "You're in no condition to help anyone. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

"You got that protecting me," Katara countered sternly. "So shut up and let me help you."

If Zuko had any objection he didn't voice it.

She knelt before him, and moved her hands slowly but surely, holding one end of the wrap flush against his chest as she bound the wound, tightly, but still with breathing room. Her fingers brushed gently against Zuko's skin as she worked, and she noticed his chest was littered with other scars, most small, but numerous. She had to reach around him to wrap it well, and she noticed Zuko arched his back to give her hands room. As he did, Katara found herself remembering the moment when he had grabbed her as they fell. His arms were bound and held into the metal contraption's clamps now, but she could clearly remember the feel of them around her, strong and protecting. She had felt safe then.

Her face flushed, and she pulled the last knot to the makeshift bandage tight letting Zuko's shirt fall back down to cover it. _What a stupid thing to think of now, _she reprimanded herself, turning her mind back to healing. "There, that should do for now. But we'll need to clean that wound later when we get the chance." Katara finished, and glancing up at her unexpected patient, and saw that for some strange reason he was blushing too. She looked back down quickly. "I- I never thanked you," she said suddenly.

"For what?" he asked, his voice quiet.

"You saved me back there. Twice."

"It was nothing," Zuko responded, turning his head the other way. "It was a fight. You knocked out all those men on the wall-"

"And then you took an arrow for me, and the brunt of the fall. So... thank you."

"You must be pretty drugged, Katara..." He met her gaze once before briefly pulling away, confused. "...you're welcome," he finished awkwardly.

_Did we just have a pleasant conversation?_ she wondered in disbelief.

Katara started to stand, her job finished, plus feeling no need to stay as close to the firebender as she currently was. But as she rose, her mind swirled, and a wave of drowsiness took over. The dull pain she had been fighting in the back of her head suddenly came back to life in full force, amplified by how quickly she'd stood, and the feeling it brought was excruciating. Katara groaned as she tried to get up, only to topple over Zuko, landing abruptly in his lap, her forehead pressed against his shoulders.

She felt his muscles tensing up through his shirt, simultaneous to the heat rising in her cheeks. Whether it was because she was flushed and embarrassed or because of the drug's effects she couldn't say. "S-sorry. I'm... I'm still so dizzy...T-This isn't what it looks like..." she defended herself weakly.

Placing a hand against his chest she tried to push herself up but found no strength in her arms to do so. Her hand slipped when she tried again, and she collapsed against him a second time, frustrated with herself, unable to move, but too stubborn to quit. Eventually, through the haze, she realize he was talking to her.

"...I told you you're in no condition to do anything. You _are_ drugged, Katara," she heard him exclaim in a calm yet tense voice, as if he was nervous.

_Well, duh I'm drugged,_ she wanted to say, but the concern in his voice held her tongue. "Just... just give me a moment..." she whispered instead, her lips just inches away from his chest.

"...I don't mind."

"Huh?" Katara's drugged like state caused her to wonder if she heard him right.

"...You're sweating pretty badly, and you don't look very well... I think its best if you just... stay where you are, I guess."

Normally the concept of laying anywhere within distance of the fire prince made Katara sick to her stomach. Now she could barely laugh at the irony of things. Here she was, feeling his body heat, and what made it worse...

She didn't mind either.

She blamed it all on the drug.

She never answered him back but neither did she try to move away from her position. Her head rested against his shoulders, her arms pressed against his chest as it slowly expanded up and down with Zuko's breathing. Katara found herself synchronizing her breathing with his, as if their two hearts beat as one.

Once again the minutes passed by without a word being exchanged by the two cell mates.

"I'm sorry." Again, it was Zuko who broke the silence.

"...For what?" Katara had never really allowed herself to hear the sincerity of those words before - they were coming from Zuko after all - but now in the confines of the dark room, she was compelled to listen to him.

"Well... about a lot of things. But mainly I wanted to say I'm sorry for before. About attacking you... and scorching your hair."

"My hair's already ruined anyway," Katara sighed, blowing a scorched lock discontentedly away from her face.

She tried weakly again to push herself off Zuko, but her world spun and she buried her face in the crook of his shoulder again. "Ow, stop!" he groaned. "Just stop until you can move," he told her, his voice strained. "I still have an arrow wound, remember?"

Giving up, she allowed herself to relax against him, trying to breath the heavy air as her head pounded. Trying not to notice how her lips were almost touching his neck. As she waited for the spell to pass, a thought crossed her mind. "How do we always wind up here?"

"I'm... sorry?" Zuko asked.

She moved her head slightly so that her mouth was away from his neck, making her words less muffled. "In some grungy dark cell somewhere," she clarified, noticing that she could see his face now.

"Well, I just have horrible luck," he reasoned. "I don't know how you got in here."

"It's bad luck to be in a cell with me?" she demanded, her head lifting a little.

"It's bad luck to be in a cell at all," Zuko pointed out.

"I guess," she admitted, before letting her head drop back to his shoulder.

She flexed a fist a few times until she felt more in control of her arm, still focused vaguely on getting off Zuko. Testing the limb, she sadly fondled a scalded end of her hair. "Do you know why I always wanted long hair, Zuko?" she asked suddenly. He raised an eyebrow cautiously. She could tell he was afraid her mood would switch and she'd let him have it again. But right now, she just couldn't. She could barely do anything. Instead she stared at the sad, shriveled lock. "My mother had the longest, most beautiful hair. I used to love it."

She was surprised herself that she'd let him in on her small secret. Whether out of weariness, out of pain, or maybe just out of plain insanity, she wasn't sure. Katara didn't know why she was rambling to Zuko, much less confiding a well kept secret of hers to him. But at that moment she didn't really care. It just felt good to talk to someone, and to hear the reassuring sound of another's voice in this frightening place. "It was one of the things I remembered most about her before she died," she revealed.

Then Katara paused, letting the implications of her statement sink in. She waited for a moment, hoping for some sort of response; a laugh, a snort, a snicker. Something that would reinforce why she hated him in the first place. But Zuko's answer was none of the above. Instead, when he realize she was waiting for him to speak, he glanced down at her, awkwardly, but sadly too.

"I know. You told me... back then, about your mother, that is." That was all he said, but his voice carried the same sorrow it had held back in the crystal catacombs of Ba Sing Se; a memory that, for once, Katara didn't wish she would forget.

"...I don't really remember her that much," Katara admitted, dropping the lock and finally surrendering to her exhaustion. "It tears me up that she died, but now I whenever I tried to recall her face all I can remember is... nothing. Does that make me a horrible person?"

Zuko shrugged with one shoulder - the one she wasn't laying on. Suddenly, she hoped she wasn't drooling. "I can't say..." He cleared his throat. "Sometimes it's better like that. To not remember. It makes the pain of losing someone a little more bearable. It makes it... not hurt so much."

Katara swore she could hear a hint of sadness as Zuko spoke those words. Something told her he wasn't just talking about her.

"Maybe," she considered. "But I do remember her hair," Katara recalled. "So, to me, my hair's not just something I can grow back. It's one of the few things that helps me remember her so much." She realized talking was helping her focus.

Zuko turned his gaze on a lock of his own bangs curiously, as if he'd never really thought about his hair before. Katara hadn't thought it possible to look stoic while crossing your eyes, but somehow Zuko did it. "I'm not really that attached to mine."

"I can tell," she smirked.

To which Zuko replied with a funny sound, deep in his throat, and if Katara hadn't been pressed against him, able to feel his chest rise with each chuckle, and sense the low rumble in the base of his neck, she might not have believed it. "Was that a laugh?" she demanded. "Are you laughing?"

"No," he said quickly.

"I think you were."

"My mother had long hair too," he said suddenly, switching the subject. "I used to love her hair, so I think I understand."

"What... what happened to her?"

Zuko swallowed. "I don't know."

They were quiet for a time, and then Zuko sighed. "Rest," he commanded, tossing his head back, as if trying to make her more comfortable. "You're obviously not going to be moving soon, and the Warden could be here any time." "

"What?" she demanded, her voice breathy as she imagined sleeping like that, against... _him..._ "I can't... sleep..." But he did feel so good...

"Rest," he repeated, in that voice that made everything feel safe and okay. "I'll keep watch."

Katara was too close to the edge to care anymore. Her mind was already drifting, and her body ached for rest. Finally surrendering, she relaxed onto the fire prince, letting her body nestle into his, the two fitting smoothly together. His broad shoulders felt as if they were meant for her to sleep on.

As her eyes blinked heavily, she watched his scarred face and wondered if, years ago, when she was running in fear of Zuko, could she have ever seen the strength in his features? She knew she never would have thought she'd wind up like this, sleeping on his shoulder, sitting in his lap. But even more strange - if that were possible - she realized something else she would have never predicted; his presence made her feel safe. It was an odd thought, to be directed at the man who had hunted them for so long. But it was true. With Zuko, she felt... safe. Even here, in a dark cell in the depths of the Fire Nation.

His golden eyes blinked, slowly, and her mind swam again.

Sighing, she stopped fighting, and drifted off.

* * *

It had only been about an hour or two after Katara had fallen asleep.

The metal bracers bit into Zuko's arms, causing them to itch and hurt, and his body ached from his previous skirmish with the prison guards. His bones creaked and he yearned to be able to stretch free from the infernal metal chair he was forced on. He was undeniably in an irritating, extremely uncomfortable position. Yet oddly enough, none of that seemed to matter as a warm Katara, fast asleep on his chest, gave him a strange, sensual feeling that seemed to counter all the aches. With every slight breath she exhaled, he felt her warm breath upon his cheek and neck, causing his heart to race. It felt... nice.

Zuko wasn't stupid.

The exotically dark skinned, blue-eyed waterbender was not just pretty. Now that he had a decent reason to look at her, he had to admit, she was beautiful beyond a doubt. And with her sleeping peacefully like that, without her face scowling at him, he was free to study each lovely aspect.

Being this close to her, being able to feel her soft skin upon his, being able to hear her own steady heart beat, seeing the fullness of her soft lips; he would have to be dead to not feel anything at all right now for the sleeping waterbender.

For a moment, he felt truly drawn to her, as if, for once, they truly were together in something. As if she was pulling him in. He might really have moved, if the infernal metal chair hadn't bit into his arms so rigidly.

But the moment's thought disappeared from his mind as he shook it off. This was insane. He did not just think that way about Katara. He grimaced at the thought of what she might have done to him should she have heard his thoughts.

Wasn't it her fault anyway for being here? He never would have been in this situation had she not stowed away and forced herself on their mission. But there was no way he would pin the blame on her like that. Not after she blew her own cover to save him from captivity. _And I guess I blew mine with or without her... _The thought was depressingly humbling.

With nothing else to do, he found himself looking at this sleeping girl again, with her long, dark hair that smelled of the cold south pole, he could hardly believe she was real at all. But it wasn't hard to figure Katara out, the more he thought of it, and there was little else to do. The prison guard who caught them had been right. She did care more about other people then herself.

...he envied that somewhat.

As long as he'd been alive, he had been taught that his life was not his own to make, but rather focusing what he could have done with it to serve his country was all that mattered. The duties of a Prince, the great lie of the Fire Nation, cared not for an individual. But Katara did. She was free to.

It was a freedom Zuko did not have.

He sighed quietly under his breath. This was going to be some torture alright. Although probably not quite like what the warden had in mind.

Finding it difficult to sleep, Zuko kept himself awake with long thoughts and heavy, relaxing breathing. Yet once more, his attention turned to Katara's slumbering face. He was so confused and conflicted about her. Like the element she aligned herself with, Katara was unpredictable. Peaceful like a small creak one second, raging like a powerful river the next. Hating him then, trusting him now. It was all too much.

His thoughts went back to the events of Ba Sing Se and his epic climatic battle with the Avatar and his waterbending Si Fu.

_I thought you changed!_ her words echoed hard.

_I have changed!_ his answer boomed back, equally loud in his head.

Zuko's golden eyes lowered. What a lie, he told himself. He could barely stand the shame of remembering it. He found it even harder to bear, with Katara's peaceful figure sleeping beside him.

"...I'm sorry..." He whispered softly in her ear, knowing she never would have heard him, even if she did reply back with a peaceful murmur.

And with that, fatigue caught up with the fire prince as his eye lids began to feel heavy, closing, and dragging his subconscious off into the dream world.

* * *

Zuko squinted painfully as the harsh light streamed in through the open door. "Katara," he hissed, and the girl stirred awake drowsily.

Quickly realizing they weren't the only ones in the room Katara managed to push herself off him with only a little effort, the effects of the drug apparently weakened with a little bit of rest.

"Well, well, well," the Warden's voice drawled. "Was I interrupting something here, Prince Zuko?" The Warden smiled sinisterly as he eyed both Zuko and Katara. "I never figured you to be the... cuddling type. But then again..." His eyes went up and down on Katara, taking her in, and for some reason, whether embarrassment or... something else, Zuko felt his anger rise.

"She's quite the looker," the Warden continued when he was done ogling. "A bit young I suppose but so exotic... don't you think?" He grinned; Katara answered with a hard stare. "Nevertheless," he droned on, "whatever the situation, I never would have thought I'd find you in here, Prince Zuko." Just the way the Warden said his name sounded like an accusation.

"Do you know me?" Zuko glared, managing to calm himself forcibly.

"How could I not?" the older man drawled. "You broke my niece's heart."

Zuko's mind wheeled brokenly, the calm he'd sought shattered. Finally he locked onto the Warden's meaning. "You're Mai's uncle?" he asked, aghast. And then the words sunk in. _Mai? Heartbroken?_ "I never meant to hurt her-"

"Quiet!" the Warden barked, his knuckles slamming into Zuko's jaw, the force of the backhand knocking him and the chair over.

Zuko spat some blood as a guard righted him, heaving the heavy metal chair and it's occupant back upright before the Warden. Zuko run his tongue through his bloody mouth, noting a split lip. Katara, who wasn't one to just stand by and watch abuse, found herself moving to intercept the Warden but was halted as she felt the grip of the second strong prison guard upon her. Still recovering from the drug, she cursed silently as she watched helplessly, her arm twisted behind her, holding her both upright on her waving feet, and well clear of the Warden, and Zuko.

The Warden smiled. "You're my... special prisoner now. And you'd best behave." His eyes narrowed as he glanced behind him out of the cell. "If these prisoners found out who you are, the traitor prince who let his nation down, why, they'd tear you to shreds - and that's the upper level ones."

"You don't scare me," Zuko growled. "Blow all the steam you want. My father wants me alive, and I know that's how you'll keep me."

Zuko grunted in agony as the Warden's foot slammed into his stomach, his toe knocking against the open wound. Zuko rocked back in the chair from the impact of the blow, barely suppressing a cry. The chair slammed back into the ground, and he and his head lifted, golden eyes glowering. "You'll make life here hard for yourself if you keep that up," the Warden warned. "Here, I make the rules, and not even _you, _my_ Prince, _are above them. Besides, you may have the Fire Lord's protection, but she," he glanced at Katara, who was held in place by the guard, still struggling pointlessly, "does not."

"What's in it for you?" Zuko asked, his voice dropping dangerously. "Why don't you just tell my father and collect your reward?"

"Oh, in due time, believe me, I intend to collect," he declared mysteriously. "But right now, I'm here to decide what to do with her. As much as I'd hate to keep such a _cute_ couple apart, she can't just stay in your cell, you know."

Zuko's eyes darted back and forth between the Warden and Katara. Because they'd drugged Katara up, Zuko knew they feared her waterbending abilities, and judging by his confinement to the metal chair, they were rightfully cautious of his firebending as well. It wasn't surprising that the Warden would decide to separate the two. Two halves of a dangerous whole would be much easier to contain. But if they considered the two benders dangerous, maybe he could use that fear to get their cooperation.

"Don't hurt her, and I'll do whatever you say," Zuko bartered.

"You'll already do whatever I say," the Warden calculated, "whether I kill her or not."

"You obviously don't know who she is if you want to kill her," Zuko prodded.

"What? Are you fathering some bastard children with this waterbending monstrosity?" he barked, apparently no longer amused by the pairing. "Should I save her for Mai to slice up next time you crush her heart?"

Zuko's face blanched. "That's ridiculous."

"Is it?"

"Yes," he growled, in that dry, sure voice that made people listen. "You should save her for Azula." He heard Katara gasp. "Katara is the Avatar's waterbending teacher, and she's been traveling with him up until now. She has tons of information regarding him, his whereabouts and abilities, as well as being privy to all his plans. Plus, speaking from experience, if you have her, it's only a matter of time until the Avatar himself shows up - just in case you were wondering if she was _my_ woman."

"Zuko!" Katara shouted in shock and anger, pulling against her guard roughly. "You lying treacherous -"

"Enough!" the Warden roared. "You've convinced me." He turned to the guard holding her. "Throw this girl in a high security cell, and keep all water away from her. Watch her closely, and make sure she doesn't bend." He glared at her. "You can walk free as long as you don't do anything stupid. But if you do, or if we catch you bending, you'll be chained up, night and day, with no water, until Princess Azula comes to collect. Do you understand me girl?"

Katara glared at him, her jaw clenched, obviously refusing to respond.

"Don't make this harder on yourself," he hissed, grabbing the top of her head roughly by her hair. "No bending, and you'll have the same rights as the other prisoners. Bend, attempt escape, or cause any kind of trouble, and you'll be locked down, got it?" he demanded, his face threateningly close to hers.

"I understand," Katara finally spat. "Now get me out of this bastard's cell."

Zuko stared after her as she was escorted out of the cell by the burly guards, begging for her to understand, to look back so that he could try and tell her it wasn't what it seemed. But she didn't look back. Not once. The Warden cracked a smile. "I don't think she knows what you just saved her from."

"I don't care," Zuko replied, trying to sound as if he didn't, feeling defeated but not broken.

"Of course, she'll be in for much worse when Princess Azula arrives... if what you say is true."

"She's coming?" Zuko demanded.

"Well, we'll see, won't we?"

The door slammed, and Zuko was left back in the dark with nothing but the Warden's calculating laughter and the thought of Azula on her way to keep him company.


	8. Chapter 8:Prisoner

Author's note:

**Trombe: One misunderstanding after another. Poor Zuzu. Why do we torture him so? Oh well. Anyway thanks to you guys who reviewed. You're what keeps us going. Read and enjoy.  
**

_artsyelric: damn, this prison sucks... and i love sokka XDDD  
_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 8: Prisoner  
**

* * *

"Get off me!" Katara shouted as the guard pushed her roughly through an open cell door. "I can walk by myself!" she uttered self righteously, chest heaving in indignation.

The guard didn't answer as he swung the door shut with a loud clang, and Sokka watched as he slid the heavy metal brace into place from the outside. The disguised warrior ducked around the corner as he watched the other man. He was a huge fellow, with a golden flame in the center of his helmet. _One of the Warden's personal guards then,_ Sokka reasoned.

Since arriving at the Boiling Rock, Sokka had noticed four types of guards. There were the prison guards, the ones who interacted directly with the prisoners and guarded them specifically. Then the service guards, who guarded places like the uniform wrack or the air barge they used to leave the Boiling Rock, as well as maintaining places like the kitchen, the walls, and the coolers. Acting as sentries as well, they were supposed to kill on sight if any prisoner got past them, but otherwise weren't responsible for the prisoners in any way. Then there were the punishers, the guards who made rounds to invoke retribution on the poorer behaved prisoners reported to them by the prison guards. These guards were the only ones permitted to carry weapons (often whips), and usually had extremely vicious streaks, even compared to the other guards. Finally there were the Warden's guards. The man outside Katara's cell was the first one Sokka had seen, but he knew it was one right away from the description. Cold, impassive, and huge. They were the elite, and did only what the Warden said. The Boiling Rock had yet to meet a prisoner, or anyone for that matter, besides the royal princess Azula, who could faze these colossal minions.

Sokka swallowed as the elite's head turned towards him. Plucking up his courage, he stepped rigidly around the wall and into view. "I'm here to bring the new prisoner her clothes. Can I assume this is her cell?" Sokka asked, glancing at the number 16 scrawled across it.

Suddenly a huge, trembling bang resounded through the door, accompanied by a high pitched, and very frustrated, screech. Sokka jumped before he caught himself, but the Warden's guard didn't bat an eye. Only Katara would have the nerve to be more angry then scared in such a predicament. "I'll... uh... take that as a yes..." Sokka gasped.

"They informed you she's a waterbender, then?" the elite asked, raising an eyebrow.

Sokka nodded, not sure what the proper response was, and the guard seemed pacified. At least, he turned on his heal and left without so much as a 'good luck', and Sokka was left standing stupidly with the fire nation smock in his hands. Sokka let out a deep breath he'd been holding and turned to the door. As he pulled it open with an exaggerated heave, he heard what was unmistakably the sound of Katara smashing the chair in her room.

"Break that and you'll have no where to sit," Sokka chastised. "Baby Sis- Ah! Ow!" As he stepped through the door, Katara's palm slapped across his face with the full force of her body, and he felt his helmet fly off. "Katara! What are you doing! That hurt!"

"Sokka!" she cried, throwing her arms around him instead. "Thank the spirits! You should be more careful."

"Me?!" He yelled, rubbing his face.

"Yes," she replied. "What if I had hurt you before I knew who you were?"

"Why does _everyone_ keep saying that?!" he cried, exasperated. "And you _did_ hurt me!" he added, nursing his now red cheek.

"Sokka, I-"

"Shh!" he hissed, covering her mouth suddenly with his hand. "Someone's coming." He peered cautiously through the barred window in the door as one of the prison guards passed on patrol of the prisoners. When he was out of ear shot again, Sokka sighed. "We're safe." His gaze turned back to Katara's. "What's going on? I thought I told you to stay out of sight! Look at this! Your captured! What happened? "

"Zuko's a bastard, that's what happened," she declared, pushing away from Sokka on wobbly legs.

He blinked. "Did they hurt you, Katara?" he demanded, rushing back to her side. "You don't look too steady."

"No, I'm fine," she assured him with a half hearted smile. "But the effects of the drug they gave me to stop my bending haven't quite worn off all the way."

"Let's sit down," he insisted, pulling her to the bed, since the chair was toppled. "Tell me what happened." Her eyes flashed as she sat beside him, and Sokka knew she was livid. Even as her brother, he'd rarely seen her this riled up. "That bad?" he prompted.

"Zuko handed me over to the Warden," she growled.

"What?"

She turned blazing eyes on her brother as she continued in a deadly quiet voice. "He told them that I was the Avatar's waterbending teacher, and that they should hold me until Azula comes for me."

"Why would he do that?" Sokka asked, confused. "How did they catch you?"

"I'm so stupid, Sokka!" she cried out, smacking her fists into the bed. "I tried to help him! He was outnumbered and I saw him, so I tried to help him. I fell for it again!"

"Katara, what are you talking about? Slow down!"

She took a deep breath. "I don't know how they caught him, but... Zuko ran out to the wall where I could see him. The guards took him down, so I threw boiling water over onto them, so he could get away. He tackled me - I thought it was because archers were shooting at me; at least, he got shot-"

"Whoa, wait a minute. He got shot? "

She glared at her brother in a 'let-me-finish' kind of way, and he held up his hands in apology. "A fireblast tipped us over the wall," Katara surmised, "and we fell really far. When I woke up, he was unconscious, so I... healed him," she almost spat. "I saved his worthless life. Then, somehow, I stupidly let him convince me to surrender. I didn't even fight, Sokka!"

"Calm down," he hushed her. "We have to stay quiet."

She took a few breaths before continuing. "They tried to make me eat a pill, but I didn't want to. Because I wouldn't, they hurt Zuko, so... I swallowed the drug." Sokka could tell his sister was blaming herself more and more with every word, but he still didn't see what Zuko had done wrong. "When I woke up, we were in a cell, and Zuko was bound. I bandaged him," she added, gesturing to her torn robe. "I thought he was almost civil, that he had saved me from the fall and the archers... Turns out he saved me for Azula."

"How do you know?"

"When the Warden came, Zuko told him all about me, like I said earlier. That I'm Aang's teacher, and... and that if they capture me, Aang will come."

"You think it's a trap..." Sokka realized. "Azula comes for you, and then Aang comes right to her?"

"I walked right into it, Sokka!" Katara buried her head in her hands, rubbing her temples. "I thought he'd saved me, and he seemed to be trying so hard to change, to help us rescue Dad... How could anyone be that horrible?"

"Hold on now, don't jump to conclusions." Sokka rubbed his chin. "This doesn't make sense. Zuko could have killed Aang any time, or even captured him, back when he was with us. Plus, if he wanted Azula to get Aang, why didn't he just tell the Warden where Aang is hiding right now? That seems like a much better plan..."

"What is with you people?" Katara demanded, sitting up angrily. "How many times does Zuko have to lie to us until we see him for what he really is? He's the enemy, Sokka."

"We don't know that," Sokka insisted.

"Fine," she huffed, turning away from him. "But I do know that every time I get near him, try to understand him, I get hurt. Whatever his intentions are, Zuko is bad news, Sokka. We should just get out of here and leave him."

"I... can't," Sokka admitted. Katara's eyebrows shot up. "At least, not yet."

"Why not?" she asked. "Is Dad here?"

Sokka shook his head, and her face dropped. "Suki is."

"Suki?" Katara repeated. "Well, that's good! In a way..."

"Yeah," Sokka agreed. "And... well, I haven't exactly figured out an escape plan yet." Katara glared at him. "I'm working on it!" he insisted.

"Well work quickly," his sister growled, her foot tapping irritably. "I don't want to be here a minute more than necessary. I can't wait to be rid of this place, and _him._ I _hate_ the fire nation!"

* * *

How long had it been since they had left him in his cell to rot? Zuko couldn't remember. There was no way to tell time within the confined cells. No windows for the sun or the moon to shine through. Just the hard, pitch black room.

He grimaced in pain as he moved to bend, pain unexpectedly shooting through his system. The arrow wound was still tender. But it wasn't the pain keeping him down. It was the blue makeshift bandage wrapped around the wound that tore at him. There he lay, against the nearest wall thinking of the gentle hands that had tended his injury.

_It's a ploy! I'm not betraying you! _he wanted to scream to her. He wished for the life of him that she could have turned around and understood what he was doing. Unfortunately, she never did. And now she was gone.

_Damn it! _Zuko banged his head against the wall hard, the blow echoed throughout the small room. His golden eyes blankly staring up at the dark ceiling.

At least he was free of that stupid chair. The Warden's way of showing his gratitude for giving him Katara as a prize.

Zuko pounded his fist against the wall, enraged at the thought. As if he would ever trade Katara - or anyone! - for a chair.

One disaster had led to another. Zuko silently wished he hadn't told Sokka about this place. Maybe all of this could have been avoided.

But there was no use crying over spilled tea now, as his Uncle Iroh would say. He just had to deal with all of this somehow.

Suddenly the doors swung open, revealing a skinny guard, his helmet too big for his head, but somehow just managing to cover his features nonetheless. Closing the door behind him, the guard slowly made his way towards Zuko.

The fire prince was in no mood to be toyed with. If there was any way to vent his anger out, he was going to start with this guard. And if there were any consequences to it, Zuko payed no heed.

"Hey I thought you were he-"

"Gah!" Zuko yelled out as he threw a sweeping kick that knocked the guard down.

The scrawny man yelped in surprise. Zuko quickly pounced on him, pressing the guard down with his weight, his left hand gripping the guard's shirt. Within moments he had his fist up to the helmed face, ready to strike a fireblast.

"Wait! It's me!" That whiny voice snapped Zuko out of his trance.

"Sokka..." Zuko realized, withdrawing his fist back down and letting the water tribe boy go as he stood up off him. "You really shouldn't sneak up on prisoners like that. I could have killed you easily."

"Why?! Why?! Every time! Why?!" Sokka was flabbergasted.

"Why what?" Zuko asked nonchalantly as he sat back down, leaning against the wall once more.

"Just- just forget it." Sokka slammed his open palm on his forehead, clearly irritated. "...I hate this disguise."

"What's going on? Did you think of a plan yet to get us out?" Zuko asked.

"No but I'm working on it. I've got something in mind, but no details yet. Anyway, that's not why I'm here." The water tribe boy's face turned serious. "Why is Katara here? And why does she think you betrayed her?"

"I didn't betray her," Zuko jumped in quickly. "I was... it was just... it was the only way, alright?" Zuko was stuttering, looking for the right words.

"I hate to tell you this, Zuko," Sokka interjected, "but right now it looks... really bad."

"Right," Zuko answered hastily, running his fingers through his hair in frustration. "And I'll bet you wouldn't believe me even if I told you..."

"Try me." Sokka solemnly replied.

So Zuko told him everything. From his failed escape, Katara saving him, his arrow wound, their eventual capture, their imprisonment and his bargaining with the Warden, although he kindly left out the part where he and Katara slept together. Zuko wanted Sokka to help him not kill him on the spot. It all just pored out of him, as if he couldn't hold back any more. When he finished, he realized he was pacing. But just having said it, getting it off his chest, was starting to help. If only Sokka would understand now... Or was that too much to ask?

"I see..." the warrior considered calmly as he scratched his hairless chin. "So you're telling me that you _did _betray Katara, but only to _save _Katara... hum..."

"I _had _to, Sokka," Zuko urged him.

"...Very clever," the water tribe boy declared suddenly. "Very nice. I'd give it a three out of five."

"A... three out of five?! I'm serious, Sokka!"

"Hey, relax! _I_ believe you, don't I?"

"Yeah, but now your sister thinks I'm a traitor... again," Zuko fumed.

"Don't think of it like that..." Sokka tried to cheer him up.

"What am I suppose to think of then?!" Zuko lashed out. "She was finally beginning to trust me! There's no chance of her trusting me now. Or ever for that matter," Zuko angrily spat. "Guh... Why am I so bad at this?"

"Hey you saved my sister's life, man. In fact from the looks of it you've saved her three times already," Sokka recounted. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you've got a thing for my sister or something, ahehehehe," the water tribe warrior laughed awkwardly.

Zuko's face was flushed and turned a shade of red. "Don't be ridiculous!"

"That's what I thought," Sokka agreed. "Anyway, yeah. What you did... That's... something worth commending, Zuko. Thanks." Sokka placed a hand on Zuko's shoulder in true camaraderie fashion. Zuko nodded hesitantly.

"You're welcome... I guess."

"I'll talk to her as soon as I can," Sokka assured him. "Straighten things out. Meanwhile you should rest. You still look pretty weak." Sokka stood up as he adjusted his helmet.

"I was weak enough to take you down." Zuko couldn't help it.

"...Funny." Sokka looked at him sternly. "Anyway watch your back. I'll see what I can do." He glanced back at Zuko. "She may not understand right away..."

"I know."

And with a final nod, Sokka turned and left the cell, the doors slamming shut once again, leaving Zuko to ponder what did he ever do to deserve a destiny like this.

* * *

Time seemed to run together in Katara's mind. Inside the cells, it was hard to tell what time it was anyway. At some point, they let her out for dinner, in a huge mess hall full of prisoners dressed in the same bland, dirty clothes Sokka had brought her the last time they talked. The red, almost brown shirt was too large for her, but no one seemed to care. _At least the pants stay on_, she admitted to herself, glancing at her measly portion of meat. _For now._

She didn't see Suki, but she didn't try very hard. She was more concerned with the other prisoners. The pale faces of the fire nation watched her from everywhere, their piercing golden eyes constantly following her. She felt like she was on display. And every face that watched her looked like Zuko.

If she hadn't been worried about starving, she wouldn't have been able to choke down the meat.

When the meal ended (too long for Katara, though she had barely finished her food), the prisoners filed out, except those on dishes, and were taken back to their dark cells. When Katara arrived at hers, she barely had a chance for her eyes to adjust before the bolt was once again creaking open. Light streamed in as a strict looking guard stepped into her cell. "You are the waterbender Katara?" he demanded.

"Yes."

"You are now prisoner number 16, that will be you're name, get used to it," he recited quickly. "When not accompanied by a guard, you will be confined here. There will be no bending. You will be allowed out of your cell twice a day, once in the morning, for your daily exercises and morning chores, and once in the evening, for roll call, public exhibitions, and a meal. One more there will be no bending. You will be assigned kitchen duty when we feel like it. Any guard has the right to punish you as they see fit, but bending will always earn you a one way trip to the cooler, or in your case," he sneered at this part, "a much more... confined cell. And loss of all rights to eat or leave your cell. So, again I warn you there will be absolutely no bending." The man lifted an eyebrow. "Are we clear?"

"Who are you?" Katara asked, her voice graining with anger.

"I'm the man in charge of all prisoners," the stiff man answered. "Any and all reports of wrong doings will come to me, and I choose what the Warden will hear. I try to think of myself as fair," he added, "but lets face it. This is the Boiling Rock. What's fair is what I say is fair. I'll have you know I am hardly kind. You'll get enough grief from the Warden, and the other prisoners and guards. And I hear Princess Azula has an interest in you as well - always a bad thing. As far as I go though, if you want trouble, I'll give it to you, no question of that, but keep your head down and don't start anything, and hopefully we won't have to meet again.

"Remember, everything you have here is a privileged, from you bed and this private cell, to food and water, and sunlight. These are basics I think every prisoner should have. But if you do make trouble and I have to step in, I will take those privileges away. Meals, water, even the clothes on your back. You won't get the decency of receiving your punishment privately, here in your cell. If you incur my wrath, then your humiliation will be public, and I'm afraid you'll learn soon enough that the guards are the least of your worries."

On that ominous note, the man turned on his heal and strode out.

Needless to say, Katara slept very poorly that night. She realized belatedly she was still kind of hungry, and she had nothing to drink until they opened her cell in the morning. She had a chamber pot (which she was sure she'd be cleaning as a part of morning chores), a very rough bed with no blanket (which was fine, considering the muggy temperature), and a chair (which just made the room cramped). Chained to the wall beside the bed were a pair of handcuff, just too tall for her. Just knowing they were there made sleeping in the stuffy room even more difficult.

And then there was the screaming. Every once in a while, at least in the beginning of the evening, Katara would hear screaming or crying coming in through her door. Sometimes it was far away, and sometimes it sounded right next door. One time it was a deep male voice, the next a shockingly female cry, and following that one she couldn't tell. Eventually she began to loose track. Her swollen ankle throbbed.

She checked the window to make sure no one was coming, and tried one more time to bend the sweat massing on her forehead in the heat. To her relief, the water in it leaped to obey her command. Rejoicing silently in her somewhat nasty success, she healed her ankle, and finally managed to drift to sleep for the night.

Yet no sooner had she closed her eyes then they were shooting back open. How much time had passed, she didn't know, but a loud bell was sounding outside her metal holding, and the huge door was springing open on it's own. Rubbing her now baggy eyes, she stepped cautiously out of her door. Prisoners all around the holding docks were doing the same, and she glanced to the one nearest her. "What's going on?" she asked.

The man, a big fire nation fellow with broad shoulders and thick lips, gestured sleepily. "Morning exercises," he yawned. "Then chores. Just follow along..."

Katara was scratching her head at the man when someone called her name. "Katara!"

She turned quickly to find a wide eyed, girl whose striking features were familiar to Katara. "Suki!" she exclaimed, as the girl hugged her friend. "I heard you were here."

"I'm so glad to see you," Suki smiled, drawing back. "Come on, let's go. If we dawdle, the guards will come." She pulled Katara along after the other prisoners, meandering down into the open area and through the guarded hall. "Sok... Someone told me you were in cell 16. I'm in 21, so we're on the same floor. I'm at the end of the hall here. Watch yourself on the stairs," she added, as they started down behind the big firenation man. "I slipped the first time..."

"Where are we going?" Katara asked.

"Outside, to that big cement area," Suki replied. "We do exercises there; it's the only time we get to go outside."

"How horrible," the waterbender whispered.

"This whole place is horrible," Suki agreed with a shiver. "It sucks the hope right out of you... But you're here now, and so is _he,"_ the Kyoshi warrior added, keeping her boyfriend's name on the down low. "I feel like I could hope again."

Katara tried to smile at her friend as they moved down the clanging metal hall Zuko had run through the day before. "As long as Aang's out there, we can always hope," Katara replied. "And," she whispered more quietly, "this isn't the first inescapable prison I've escaped from."

Suki smiled as they stepped out of the hall and into the bright sunlight. Katara filed into a spot beside her long lost comrade, and started following the rest of the prisoners as they stretched. Her eyes scanned the guards on the stone walls above them, remembering her fight up there the day before. Remembering Zuko.

She angrily focused on her stretching again, putting her whole mind into the act, letting her body relax, forgetting where she was. The warm sun on her skin felt good, despite the heat, and she lost herself in the simplicity of her actions.

Unfortunately, the relief was short lived. All too soon she was pulled from her meditation by the ringing of another bell. Suki stood beside her and they started walking back to the metal holding area. Katara glanced around her, taking in the prisoners. She hadn't noticed when it happened, but almost everyone around her now were captured earth kingdom fighters. She could tell by their skin, hair and eyes, even if they all wore the same drab red. Plus, the fire nation prisoners tended to gape at her; these people even offered a pleasant smile or two when she met their eye. But even then, most had a disheartened feel to them. But Katara had been in prisons before so she didn't find that odd at all.

Looking further around, she saw that there were fire nation prisoners, in plenty, but far up ahead of herself, Suki and the earth warriors. Suki saw her noticing, and pulled Katara down. "Don't stare," she said simply. "It'll draw attention to you."

"How come we're all so separated?" Katara said.

"We earth kingdom captives have to stick together," Suki said simply. "The fire nation prisoners far outnumber us, most especially in the lower cells."

"Lower cells?" Katara asked.

Suki nodded. "All these prisoners, including ourselves, are from the upper cells. We're war prisoners, high ranking fire nation officials, or traitors. We're kept on extra surveillance, since many of us can bend. There are twice as many prisoners as all of us in the lower cells, down by where we just were for exercises, almost all fire nation scum. So we have to stick together as much as possible. The fire nation prisoners up here are very proud, and they'll take a jab at us whenever possible. The guards let them get away with it most of the time too..."

"How cruel..." Katara glanced behind them. "How come that smaller group of fire nation prisoners are behind us? Should they be up front with the other ones?"

Suki shook her head. "That's our third faction. The people up front still have their pride - they're loyal to the fire nation, and they're jerks. The guys behind us are the people in here for treason. Many of them betrayed the Fire Nation, so most of the Fire Nation prisoners pick on them even worse than us. I get along okay with some of them, but you have to be careful. Just because they betrayed their country doesn't mean they're on our side."

"Tell me about it," Katara grimaced. They came back into the metal holding dock, and Karata smiled as she saw Sokka among the guards. Now that she knew what to look for, she immediately recognized his dark complexion and scrawny form. "What are we doing now?" Katara asked.

"Chores," Suki replied. Katara noticed some of the people moving up to cells, emptying chamber pots, scrubbing things. Some even moved towards the kitchen. But Suki kept Katara in tow, staying in the portioned center section and heading to a group of people near the stairs. She smiled as an older earthbender handed her a mop. "Thanks, Wei," she said, and the man nodded. "This is Katara. She's the waterbender everyone's buzzing about."

The man's eyes perked for an instant before that dead look returned to them. "I heard you travel with the Avatar," he stated simply.

"I did," Katara responded. "But if he's smart he'll stay as far away from here as he can."

"I'm sorry you're here. I saw you at Ba Sing Se," he added, handing her a mop. "You and your friends took out a drill there."

"We did," Katara exclaimed. "But... I don't remember you."

"No, I suppose not. I was part of the Terra Team. We were knocked out by those same two girls who captured Suki and her friends."

Katara glanced at Suki and she shrugged offhandedly. "Azula's minions."

"Mai and Ty Lee."

"Right."

The man nodded. "I hear you saved some of our men," he added to Katara. "I thank you. There are more men from my troop here. Let us know if you need anything we can help you with. We owe you at least that much."

"I am honored," Katara accepted, bowing. "Please let me help you if I can as well."

"In this place," Wei smiled weakly, "we could all use some help. Best of luck to you," he added before bowing back, and moving away to mop.

Katara and Suki mopped quietly for a time, trying to keep busy, to keep the guards eyes off them. But then a commotion came from the floor level cells that drew everyone's attention, including the girls. Katara and Suki moved towards the front of the few onlookers near enough to notice, and Katara heard a guard shouting. "Get out of your cell, you lazy bum!"

Someone cried out as Katara's eyes and ears struggled looking for the source of the shouting.

"What do think you're doing staying in there sleeping while everyone else is working?" the guard demanded.

"I wasn't sleeping," a raspy voice protested.

"You're no better than anyone else here, so get out there and grab a mop."

The guard roughly pushed a prisoner towards Wei and the mops, and the man stumbled awkwardly, rubbing his side. Katara's eyes widened. It was the one person she wanted to see least in the world.

"Zuko..."


	9. Chapter 9:Sokka's Plan

Author's note:

**Trombe: I'm tired. Do you know how much chocolate I ate to get this chapter done? God you people are going to make me fat!**

_artsyelric: hey, that was my chocolate!_

**Trombe: Stop tempting me with your evil chocolate magic!**

_artsyelric: chocolate's not magic - just delicious! but anyway, enjoy the chapter! we had fun writing it (and watching carlos mencia while writing - de de de XDDD ...don't sue us). it was interesting keeping it cannon and building on it at the same time - like a bubble on the surface of the original story! haha! metaphors..._

_just read..._

_PS - congrats to us and thanks to all of you totally rockin' people who review - we reached 50 with this chapter! we feel the love!_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 9: Sokka's Plan**

* * *

The Fire Prince stumbled a bit before catching his stride. Angrily he glared at the guard who'd pushed him, but decided it wasn't worth his time. Instead, he moved on and and took a mop from one of the racks and briskly went his way.

But as he went to start doing his chores, something distracted him. What caught his attention was the pair of glaring blue eyes that belonged to a very livid waterbender. No remorse, no pity at all, shone through those sapphire oculars. Zuko felt a small shiver running down his spine.

"Katara... I-"

"I've got nothing to say to you." She mopped angrily at the floor, avoiding eye contact with Zuko.

The Fire Prince was not one to give up so easily. Calmly he began to mop the floor closely to her.

"Katara please, I-" Before he knew it he was in the air for a second before hitting the hard metal floor hard. Katara's mop had literally swept him off his feet, in a move reminiscent of what he done to Sokka not too long ago.

"Oops," she gushed, exaggeratedly. "Better watch your step, prisoner. You never know what happens to traitors here," she smirked triumphantly.

Zuko's own face was scowling. This woman was impossible! Pushing himself up, he began to mop the floor with equal gusto to hers.

"Hey, I was just try-"

"Do you hear something Suki? I thought I just heard a flying dung-beetle buzz by. Must be my imagination," she feigned innocently.

"Grrr..." If there was one thing that truly irked Zuko, it was being ignored. Especially when he had done nothing to garner such a punishment. But he worked _very _hard not to let _her _know that. "Katara-"

"Hey, I think its best if you just not talk to her at all buddy," a girl with auburn short hair standing near Katara advised him.

He remembered her from the concrete vantage point he'd had of the prisoners with Sokka, back when he was still a guard. Yes, this was definitely the same girl Sokka had been ranting about. Even garbed in prison drags, he could tell she was quite pretty. Her full red lips matched well with her blue eyes, although they were not quite as blue as Katara's. Katara and Sokka had called her Suki, if Zuko remembered correctly.

Zuko stared at her briefly, wondering why her face looked so familiar. It wasn't just that he'd seen her the day before... there was something else... He realized she was glaring at him for staring at her. Finally taking her advice to heart, Zuko resumed mopping in silence, trying to ignore the animosity Katara was generating. He was not going to go away. If she wanted him gone she had another think coming.

Between the two opposing benders, no dirt or scum stood a chance against their furious mopping. No one wanted to come directly between the two; no prisoners, not even the guards passing nearby.

Finally the familiar figure of Sokka's lean frame came down from the stairs, walking casually. He stepped towards the dark space beneath the stairs where they were mopping, and looked both ways carefully before dropping his guard act. "So this is where you guys are," he sighed in relief. "Oh good; you've met already," the water tribe warrior surmised as he crossed his arms.

"Actually... We've met a long time ago," Suki stated mysteriously.

Zuko was puzzled. While he did not have the sharp memory his sister did, he thought for sure he would have remembered a pretty face such as hers. "We did?" he asked.

"Yeah. You kind of burned down my village," she said icily; Zuko could have sworn he heard Katara scoff.

But it all came together now, why she looked familiar. Sokka had even mentioned it on the balloon. The painted Kyoshi warrior! Zuko cursed under his breath. Another mistake from the past that came back to torment him. "Oh..." He replied curtly, shrinking beneath her gaze. "Sorry about that. Nice to see you again," he awkwardly greeted as he continued to mop.

_Nice to see you again?! Ugh! Why don't I just say 'happy to have burned your only home!' Stupid... _Zuko sighed to himself. This was not boding well for him at all.

Before he could speak up and apologize properly Sokka had already signaled him into the dark secluded area, beneath the stairs. Katara and Suki were already huddled in.

"So listen, I think I have an escape plan out of here," Sokka whispered.

"What's _HE_ doing here?" Katara cut in, angrily pointing one finger at Zuko.

"Like I said: I. Didn't. Betray. You. " Zuko was determined to make her listen.

"Katara listen to me," Sokka put in, "what Zuko did-"

"-is unforgivable!" Katara rushed to finish her brother's sentence. "We should just leave him here to rot!" She was obviously in no mood to listen to her brother's prattling.

"Sokka, I know this isn't the time to be arguing but maybe your sister's right," Suki considered, eying Zuko warily.

_Great, _Zuko moaned. It was beginning to look like Katara had an unexpected ally in the Kyoshi warrior. Both women already seemed set against Zuko. _Now I really have no chance..._

But Sokka, it seemed, hadn't given up yet. "What?" he protested Suki's suggestion. "But you don't even know the entire story!" Sokka looked at his girlfriend, as if he couldn't believe what she said.

"I know _him_ well enough," she objected. "It's kind of hard to trust a man who willingly attacked my home and my people." Her arms crossed against her chest, giving Sokka that unyielding attitude she'd given him the first time they met.

This wasn't working. Zuko could feel the tension in the air getting heavier. Convincing Katara of anything would take nothing short of a miracle now. He saw the loathing in her eyes before she even spoke.

"What is with you Sokka? I thought you were the one most against Zuko in the first place!" Katara argued, with her hands on her hips.

"Wait what?" Zuko asked, surprised, looking at the water tribe warrior with scrutiny.

"That was then, and this is now," Sokka countered. "Besides, doesn't that just prove that I'm not just taking his side? It's true! He didn't do anything wrong, sis. At least not from what he told me."

"Grrr... you are just impossible!" Katara shook with fury. "You!" she declared angrily, pointing at the Fire Prince. "Stay away from me!" she added in a hiss before stomping off in the opposite direction.

Sokka ran to catch up with her, his hand catching hers. "Wait a minute where are you going?"

"To make up my own escape plan! One that doesn't involve a certain scar-faced traitor!" She quickly pulled back her hand and walked off, leaving the disguised Water Tribe warrior behind.

"Well, I gotta acknowledge something about her," Sokka sighed. "When she's mad, she stays mad."

For some reason Zuko could not quell the anger that raged within him. He felt tired, yet he felt hot and antsy at the same time. He felt weak in his legs, yet he felt he could puncture steel with his bare fists. One thing was for sure it, was all because of Katara.

"You know what," Sokka stated as he walked back to the huddle. "Just forget about her. I'll fill her in later. We don't have time for all her fussy hormones anyway." Suki punched him in the arm. "Anyway," he started, rubbing the upcoming bruise tenderly, "I checked out the coolers again. The whole point of them is to keep fire benders contained, right?"

"Yeah..." Zuko agreed, wondering where this was leading.

"So they're completely insulated, and sealed to keep the cold in. Well, to keep the cold in, it also has to keep the heat out, right?"

"Just get to the point, Sokka!" Suki insisted.

"It's a perfect boat for getting through the boiling water!" he concluded.

Zuko glanced at Suki, seeing his own surprise mirrored there. "The cooler as a boat?" he repeated doubtfully. "Are you sure?"

"I'm tellin' ya," Sokka insisted, "it'll work. I walked around the perimeter. There's a blind spot right where Katara reported it, between two guard towers. It's the perfect launching point. She even calculated for the current. I already tested it out! We'll roll the cooler into the water, and just float with the current. It'll take us straight across. As long as we don't make a sound, no one will notice. And bing bang boom, we're home free!"

"But," Suki wondered, "how are you going to get the cooler out?"

"Yeah," a deep voice asked from above them. "How are you gonna get the cooler out?"

Zuko felt a glare creeping over his features as the big, firebending prisoner from the day before swung off the steps to land beside them. Chi Tzang, he thought the man was called.

"What?" Sokka protested, flustered. "We didn't, wah... we- We didn't say that!" he concluded lamely, flicking a wrist in a pathetic attempt at being offhanded.

"Yeah," Zuko insisted, "you heard wrong."

But Chi Tzang was not to be deterred. "I heard you hatching an escape plan - and I want in."

"There's nothing to get _in _on," Zuko refuted.

"Yeah," Sokka added. "The only thing we're hatching is... an... egg?"

Well, there went their cover. Zuko could hear Suki moaning behind him as he groaned at the water warrior's give away. But their camaraderie was short lived, as Chi Tzang grasped his chance. "Okay, well, I come with you," he bargained, "or else the Warden hears about this... egg... too."

Sokka glanced hopeless at Suki, who sighed. "I guess we have no choice," she surrendered.

"Fine," Sokka caved, following his girlfriend's lead. "You're in. Now, first we need someone to unbolt the cooler," the strategist added, pulling a wrench from inside the pocket of his guard uniform and holding it hidden behind his arm. "From the inside," he added.

"I guess that'll be me," Zuko sighed.

"How come!" Suki protested suspiciously.

Zuko glanced at her through his scarred eye. "Do they throw _you _in the cooler for bending?" he asked pointedly.

"Well, I'm not going," Chi Tzang protested. "Again."

"Then Zuko it is," Sokka agreed, handing over the wrench. "Now you just have to get in trouble."

"Yippy," Zuko deadpanned.

"Oh," Chi Tzang provided ominously, "if it's cooler time you want, I can get you in..."

* * *

The plan was staged and set. All Zuko needed to do was breathe, exercise caution, and pray..._ pray_ Sokka's idea went according to plan.

And off to mopping he went.

It wasn't long until he bumped into the massive form of Chi Tzang.

"Hey, what are you stupid?!" He felt the big man's wide arms wrap themselves around his shoulder blades as he mimicked the man's action. The two were in a dead lock. Zuko prided himself in his own physical strength, but when he compared himself to Chi Tzang's enormous body, with those arms that looked like they could crush boulders, he felt insignificant. As if proving Zuko's point, the huge man tossed him aside with ease, much like a child does with a rag doll. "Watch where you're going!!" Chi Tzang shouted.

Catching himself as he landed, Zuko was quite surprise at the distance he flew. Chi Tzang was definitely strong alright. But picking a fight with the behemoth was part of the plan... Cursing Sokka silently, he turned back towards the larger man. "Hey, you watch who you're shoving!" Zuko warned as he spread his arms in front of him, readying the tiger stance he relied on so well in his firebending.

He had to be careful to not to turn this into a _real_ brawl. He performed a flashy set of hand sweeps, ending by lightly pushing the man with only a meager fraction of his strength.

Chi Tzang took the cue and threw himself a foot or two backwards. "I think you mean _whom _I'm shoving!"

_Did he just correct my grammar?_ the Fire Prince marveled to himself. _No matter..._ Pushing the thought aside, Zuko braced himself for impact as his and Chi Tzang's hands collided with one another, locking the two actors in a power struggle. The bystanders began to increase as the prisoners began to crowd around the unexpected show.

"Get that scrawny kid, Chi Tzang!"

"C'mon Chi Tzang! Break that traitor in half!"

The more the prisoners taunted, the more Chi Tzang seemed to be taking the fight seriously. Zuko was straining himself just trying keep Chi Tzang's hold at bay. _This guy's serious._ Having the height advantage as well, Chi Tzang was easily pressing the Fire Prince down, as the added pressure buckled Zuko to one knee. The moment his knee hit the deck, Zuko forgot all about the plan. His pride as a warrior, as well as a firebender, would not allow such a loss.

Breaking off the attack Zuko jumped slightly in the air to gain momentum, launching a diving right punch at the peak of his jump. Chi Tzang was ready however. Catching the prince's wild attack single handed, he threw Zuko over his shoulder hard, landing Zuko flat on his back. The Fire Prince was in agony. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew he must have opened the arrow wound he was still recovering from. But all the prince was focused on was the giant man before him, and from the looks of it, his opponent was not going to take it easy on him.

And Zuko didn't want it any other way. Spinning his legs in a clockwise position, and enduring the sharp pain, he used the momentum they built up to spin himself back up. Just in the nick of time too, as Chi Tzang let loose a flying elbow drop, only to hit the hard metal floor, right where Zuko had been moments before. Whether the aggressive prisoner had held back, or Zuko had just been fast enough to dodge for real, didn't matter anymore. All Zuko could focus on was the fight before him.

Finding an opening in his opponent's guard, Zuko took the advantage and threw a well aimed fireblast at Chi Tzang's feet. The massive man just barely managed to avoid the flames by jumping. He countered Zuko's attempt by hurling both of his huge fists forward, sending an enormous fireball back at the leaner, smaller fighter. Zuko's eyes flashed with excitement as he leapt in the air, erupting intense orange flames from the soles of his feet, a trademark move Azula was often fond of. The two fireblasts collided with such force it exploded loudly. The crowd that had gathered booed and cheered. This wasn't just a small time prison brawl anymore. Zuko felt the intensity of the onlookers. This felt like how an Agni Kai should feel.

Zuko realized that no guards were breaking them up yet. It seemed most were content to let Zuko take what they thought would be a nice beating from the larger man. Some were even cheering for the big guy. Whatever their reason, they held back, and an exasperated Sokka began shouting, "I need backup over here!" Zuko barely heard him.

All his attention was now on the firebending Chi Tzang in front of him. All his anger, all the frustration he felt from Katara, he could finally unleash it. He didn't even care if his wound throbbed.

They continued on their deadly duel. Chi Tzang was the first to make a move. Stepping hard forward, he launched a wave of fire from his right kick. Zuko anticipated that move as he spun to the side to dodge the deadly blast. He recognized it right away; it was a common firebending move. In the Fire Nation military. No civilian, criminal or otherwise, should have known that move. Somehow, this man had military training.

Throwing caution aside, Zuko decided it was time he played on the offensive. Spotting Chi Tzang close to the wall, Zuko ran towards him with all the strength his legs could muster. Deftly avoiding a clothesline backhand by ducking, the Fire Prince ran against the side of the wall, throwing himself off at the top of his climb, and somersaulting over Chi Tzang, landing behind him.

Zuko smiled. He had him.

But before he could make a final move, pain flamed up his side once more, finally too strong to be ignored. It felt like a sharp dagger had stabbed him. He forced himself to shake it off again. Even if this match was fake, the crowd was not. The guards, the prisoners, they were testing him. And Zuko hated failing. Chi Tzang still hadn't turned, and Zuko seized his hard earned advantage. He crouched into a low position and launched a left elbow up, an angry fire blast following his sweep. He hesitated only enough for Chi Tzang, by the skin of his teeth, to narrowly avoided the blow by tossing himself to the side.

"Whats going on here?!" Suddenly guards from everywhere were pouring onto the scene. Both Zuko and Chi Tzang froze on the spot. The guard from the night before had appeared on the scene - the one who ran the prisoners and had threatened Zuko with public punishment. Now he looked at Zuko intensely. "You!" he accused. "I saw what you just did right there! No firebending! Into the cooler!!"

And with that said, two guards tackled Zuko to the ground, hard. Zuko's jaw rattled as his head smacked against the cold metal floor. They pressed his face painfully to the cold floor, and he could feel blood trickling from the pounding wound on his side.

_This plan of yours better work Sokka..._

Hastily he was taken away, and the prison quieted, as if nothing had ever happened.

* * *

Katara sniffed as Sokka's form slipped through her door. "Come on, Katara, we're breaking out," he brother informed her, lifting his visor sneakily as he scanned the empty hall suspiciously.

"Oh, are _we,"_ she replied angrily.

"Katara, don't do this," Sokka sighed. "We're bringing Zuko."

"Why?"

"Because... maybe he betrayed you, but he has a good excuse Katara, and- don't give me that look! Look, even if... even if he did betray you, _I'm _the one who got him into this, so... it's just as much my fault as his. So if you want to be mad a someone, be mad at me."

Katara's eyebrow quirked, somewhere between aggravation and the mother-like sympathy she was so famous for. "Sokka, that's stupid. You are by no means responsible for what Zuko did. Don't let guilt be a reason for you to look at the situation differently, Sokka. Use your brain for once."

"Fine," Sokka shot back. "Then I'm using my brain. We're escaping, and Zuko's coming. If he really did betray you, then we can kill him after. But for now, we need him, and I don't think this is the right time to discuss it - but I promise we will if you still want to. _After _you and Suki are out of here and safe."

She glanced at him. "Promise?"

"Promise," he replied. "Don't worry," he added smugly. "Zuko and I may be getting along now, but none of my guy friends will ever come between me and my baby sister!"

Katara snorted and pushed her brother playfully. "Come off it, idiot." But inside, she was glad he'd said that, even if she'd never admit it. "What's the plan?" she asked.

"Long story. Zuko's in the cooler, securing us a boat."

"What?"

"I let you out, and we're going to get Suki and Chi Tzang-"

"Who?"

"-and the three of you are going down to that spot you told me about, where the guards have a blind spot and the current pulls you across the lake. Zuko and I will meet you there in a few minutes."

"Sokka," she started as he sneaked back out the door and darted for Suki's room. "Sokka, how are we-"

"Hey, _you _skipped out on the meeting. Don't blame me," he added, tugging Suki's door open.

"About time," Suki smiled as her mocking voice drifted out of the cell. "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about me."

Sokka grinned. "Not on your life, sweet cheeks." He smiled his dorky smile and Suki smacked him in the arm. "Ow!" he winced. "That's the same spot as this morning!"

"Cry baby," she grinned. "Where's the big guy?"

"Chi Tzang's cell is 14," Sokka grumbled. "You know the plan. Meet you soon."

"Bye," she agreed, planting a quick kiss on his cheek before grabbing Katara's hand. "This way," she added, pulling the waterbender down the hall as Sokka dashed off the other way.

"What are we-"

But Suki ignored her, pulling open a third cell door. Katara hushed as the big firebender from earlier that morning stepped out expectantly. "Where's your boyfriends?" he asked plainly.

"Who?" Katara demanded.

"Sokka's getting Zuko and the cooler right now," Suki replied.

"Hey, wait a minute..." Katara pondered. "What did you call Zuko?"

Chi Tzang started down the hall the way Sokka had run - away from the stairs. "You ladies go," he said, ignoring her question. "I'll meet you there. I gotta get my girl."

"Your what?" Suki demanded, trying to keep her voice down as Chi Tzang deviated from their plan.

"I'll just be a sec," the man replied.

"You can't just go running off like that!" Suki started, just as Katara shot out a "I _hate _Zuko!"

"Women," Chi Tzang huffed back at one of them (which one was unclear) as he continued down that hall. "They all say that."

* * *

He was colder then he had ever been. Zuko could barely contain his shivers. He had only been in the cooler for about an hour and already he couldn't feel his legs anymore. Concentrating, he took a deep breath in, before breathing out an intense flame from his mouth. He felt the heat of it sinking through his whole body before fading. If not for his uncle's technique, he probably wouldn't have survived much long in the chamber. Another thing he would have thank the old man for, if ever they met again. He was accumulating quite a list of things he was grateful to Iroh for.

At least unbolting the cooler gave him something to focus on besides the mind numbing chill. Working at a competent pace, Zuko had already pretty much unscrewed all the bolts he could find, save for this one last piece before him. He found that, even with the fire breathing technique, it was still hard to control a hand that was already beginning to numb. It didn't help that the metal wrench had already reached the icy temperature that burns, like only frozen metal can. Not that it mattered. His fingers had almost lost feeling anyway. Which just made this last infernal blot twice as aggravating. Finally, after a frustrating minute, the last piece came unhinged as the bolt dropped down onto the cold metal ground.

Zuko scooped it up and hid it in his shirt with the rest. Then he squatted down, wrapping his arms around his waist to conserve heat. All he needed to do now was place faith in Sokka's words, and wait for him to come.

Patiently, he waited.

And shivered.

And waited.

And shivered.

Zuko didn't know if it was the cold or his weary body but his eye lids were beginning to get heavy, inviting him to rest for a minute. He brushed it off without a second thought. To sleep in such a place would only invite frostbite or worse. Dying in a sorry place such as this was not what he was going to be remembered for.

And then there was Katara. For sure, he was not going to die until he cleared up this whole misunderstanding with her. Breathing fire once more to keep his sanity from the cold, Zuko could not help wonder why, for the past couple of days, it had been the waterbender who preoccupied his mind the most. He wasn't sure if it was the effects of this place or maybe the fact that he was just too tired to think straight. Again, just thinking about how tired he was caused his body to shoot out pain as if on cue. He rubbed his body to keep it warm, looking down at the blue bandage that covered the arrow wound. He remembered those gentle hands, so delicate, yet firm. He remembered the feel of them as she glided those fingertips over his body, wrapping the wound.

He felt tingly just remembering it. Or maybe it had just gotten colder.

Just then the door swung open, revealing what could only have been Sokka.

"I could take you back to your cell if you learned your lesson," Sokka teased, grinning playfully.

Closing his eyes and breathing fire once more through his mouth, Zuko grinned back. "Yes I have." He unfolded his shirt slightly, revealing numerous bolts and screws. "Completely."

The other boy nodded. "I got Suki and Chi Tzang out of their cells a few minutes ago. They'll be waiting for us at the shore," Sokka whispered.

Zuko then heard footsteps approaching. "Someone's coming." Quickly he grabbed Sokka and pulled him in the cooler.

Both of them leaned towards the tiny crack in the door to listen. The newcomers voices drifted down the hall as they passed. "Yeah, new arrivals in a few days," the first one stated.

"Oh. Anyone interesting?" a second guard asked curiously.

Sokka stiffened as the first guard replied. "Nah. Just the usual. Some robbers, couple of traitors, some war prisoners; though I did hear there might be a pirate on board. Oh and some troublemaker from the main dungeons beneath the Fire Capital."

"War prisoners..." Zuko said cautiously when the guards had passed out of hearing. He eyed the stiff, blue eyed boy beside him. "It could be your father."

Sokka's eyes closed for a second, his head hung low. "I know."

"Well?" The Fire Prince asked eagerly. "What should we do? Are we going ahead with the plan or should we stay another night?"

"I don't know..." Sokka looked like the question was really bothering him. "Is it right for me to risk Suki's freedom? All of our freedom? On the slim chance that my dad's going to show up?"

Zuko stood there in silence. "It's your call Sokka."

* * *

Katara was still in a huff, though it was fading, when she and Suki sneaked past the last guard and finally reached the meeting spot, right near where Katara had buried their clothes and the boys swords. Suki took a seat on a rock, her foot tapping impatiently as she waited for the rest of their escapees. Finally, five or six minutes later (Katara never had been good at estimating time), the big man, Chi Tzang, came jogging along the shore, with not one, but two people in tow behind him. Suki's eyes flashed, but she held her tongue. Katara was very confused, but before Chi Tzang or Suki could say anything, a shower of pebbles alerted all of them of a third arriving party.

Sokka and Zuko were sliding down the cliff face behind them, a huge, rolling, metal... bunker... behind them. They dug in their feet to slow it's decent, and Suki and Chi Tzang quickly rushed to help them. When Chi Tzang's powerful legs dug in, the four quickly slowed, and Katara relaxed, letting the lake water she'd prepared to help stop their decent drop silently back to the boiling surface, unneeded. Brute strength was doing it's job. "Took you guys long enough," Chi Tzang whispered as they slid to a stop next to the rest of the runaways, beside the boiling lake. "This here's my girl and my best buddy - they're coming too."

Sokka's face dropped to a deep frown. Katara watched him suspiciously when he didn't argue, wondering if something was wrong. "Fine," he agreed, simply. "Everybody in the cooler - let's go."

Everyone struggled briefly to turn the heavy cooler and push it into the water, Katara even bending the water a little so that it slid easier down the bank. Making no noise was essential. "Is something wrong?" she whispered to her brother.

"No," he denied.

Her eyebrows dropped suspiciously. "We overheard a guard talking," Zuko stated, keeping his eyes averted. "They said they're expecting a new shipment of prisoners soon - war prisoners," he added, finally meeting her eyes, cautiously.

"Dad," Katara whispered, as his words sunk in.

"We don't know that," Sokka replied, his voice hard. "Where's our stuff?"

"Oh, here," Katara supplied, moving over to a small, cave-like hole behind a big rock. "Just move this," she added, as Sokka bent to move the big rock away. "Sokka, do you really think that Dad-"

"I don't know Katara," he cut her off in a no-nonsense kind of way, handing her her clothes. "Go get in the cooler."

Slightly confused by her brother's detached command, Katara pulled her blue clothes to her chest and moved away. Suki was watching her boyfriend suspiciously too, but Katara was at a loss for words as she watched Chi Tzang help his friends into the cooler. Finally, it was Zuko who spoke.

"Are you sure you want to go?" he asked Sokka, and Katara was almost surprised at how direct the comment was. "You're the one who said you wanted to redeem yourself. Redeem your honor. Rescuing your dad is your chance."

"Your dad?" Suki asked, hearing the conversation for the first time.

Sokka pulled his sword over his shoulders and turned to face his friends solemnly. "If I had just cut my losses at the invasion, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess. Maybe sometimes it's just better to call it quits before you fail..."

Katara bit her lip. She had no idea Sokka had felt that way, like he'd failed at the invasion. Like everyone's capture was his fault. She knew Aang had. She'd talked to the young avatar about it. But she'd never known Sokka had. _He's growing up, _she realized. _He doesn't tell me everything any more..._

She had no idea how to deal with that. Boys and their honor. They always thought they had to prove something to the world, and that they had to do it alone. Even Aang had felt that way, more than once. And she always handled it so badly. That time Aang ran away to the fire nation was just proof of how little she understood that stupid manly urge to be alone. But when guys started acting like that, Katara felt closed out. They didn't want their mother then. There was no room for a compassionate shoulder; no room for her. They became strong, and proud, and alone, and she couldn't cross that border. Not with her father, not with Aang, and now, not with Sokka. She wanted to protest, to help him, anything, but she had no idea what to say. And unfortunately, she didn't think this could be solved with something as easy as shopping, or finding a master.

But then Zuko's voice cut through her thoughts. "No," he denounced Sokka's claim. "It's not." His face was strong and serious, and Katara felt like she couldn't help but listen. This was the voice of someone wise - someone noble. A Prince. The waterbender was entranced. "Look, Sokka, you're going to fail a lot before things work out."

"That supposed to make me feel better?" Sokka asked, hefting his bag as he turned to leave.

"Even though you'll probably fail over and over and over again," Zuko continued, Sokka's attitude not deterring him in the slightest.

"Seriously," Sokka muttered, stopping, "not helping."

"You have to try every time." Zuko's hand closed on Sokka's shoulder, pulling him back towards the group, towards his friends. The Prince's words carried a weight Katara felt resonate inside her. Not even Sokka could ignore them. "You can't quit because you're afraid you _might _fail. If we did that... none of us would be here today. This war would have been over a long time ago."

_He's being honest,_ Katara realized. And for the first time, she knew what an honest Zuko sounded like. _Whatever else he says, this was true._

"Hey," Chi Tzang's voice cut in. "If you two are done cuddlin', can we get a move on?"

The question hung in the air. Then... "No," Sokka stated. "I'm staying." He dropped his bag resolutely and turned back to his friends. "You guys go." He put his hand affectionately on Suki's shoulder. "You've been here long enough."

Her face twisted for a second, and Katara could see the shadow of the prison, of her time there, flash across her eyes. But then she met Sokka's gaze, and saw his determination. He looked... admirable. Even Katara could see it. Her face softened, and she smiled, putting her hand on his wrist, trusting in him. "I'm not leaving without you, Sokka," she said simply. "You need me - I know this place. And I know you."

He smiled, but shook his head. "No, you and Katara should go," he insisted. "It can only get worse, and each minute you stay here is dangerous. Go," he prompted.

"We're not letting you stay alone!" Katara pressed, finally finding her voice.

"Don't worry," Zuko cut in, stepping up beside Suki. "I'm staying too."

"What?" Sokka protested.

"That makes me feel all better," Katara growled, rolling her eyes.

But Zuko ignored her. "The girls should go," he agreed. "Get them out of here. I'll stay with you."

"He's right, Katara," Sokka urged, turning to his sister. "Suki, you too. Please go."

But Suki shook her head. "I said, I'm not leaving you, Sokka."

"Neither of us are," Katara agreed, placing her hand on Suki's shoulder.

"You heard the girls," Chi Tzang declared. "They wanna stay, let 'em. But not me. I'm out!" He heaved on the cooler and it splashed into the water. "Let's roll, baby," he finished, hoping in beside his friends as the cooler of escapees drifted silently away.

Sokka watched him go, quietly. "We gave up our only chance of escaping," he said after a time, turning back to look at his friends. "I hope we haven't just made a big mistake."

Katara stepped up and hooked her arm through his, letting a gust of warm wind ruffle their hair. "Come on, Sokka. What's done is done. Let's go wait for Dad."

"Yeah," Sokka replied. "I sure hope he's coming..."

Suki slipped her hand into his. "We should get back before they notice we're missing."

"Yeah..." Sokka repeated, letting the girls lead him off.

* * *

Zuko's words were still echoing in Katara's mind as they struggled up the steep slope. _You can't quit because you're afraid you _might_ fail..._ Katara pushed her hair out of her face, feeling the charred ends. This was how he always sucked her in. Honest one minute, lying the next. She couldn't stand it.

_You can't quit because you're afraid you _might _fail..._

_But what are you trying to do, Zuko? _If only she could know that, for sure, things might make more sense between them... Whatever happened, she just wanted this to be over. Being near Zuko was like being on an emotional rock coaster, the same feeling she got on the delivery chutes of Omashu, and she couldn't take it much more.

Suddenly someone shouted, a male voice, echoing across the lake. All four people stiffened, and moments later an alarm sounded. Katara gasped as she saw a javelin shoot out from the wall, thudding hard into the lake. "They caught them," she whispered, as the ballista began to pull the floating cooler back to the prison.

"Come on," Zuko said from the back, urging the group forward. "We need to get back. Now."


	10. Chapter 10:Katara's Resolution

Author's note:

_artsyelric: i am currently writing to you from my new apartment in glendale, la. that's right, i am no longer located in san diego with trombe - my move is complete! hahahaha!  
_

_...trombe i already miss you!! TT...TTT_ _waah..._

**Trombe: Quit the act. You visit every weekends anyway.  
**

_arstyelric: oh yeah, ps, and THIS IS ACTUALLY NOTES ABOUT THE STORY: trombe added a scene last chapter, about zuko in the cooler, so if you missed that and want to re-read it, feel free! also... we know that in the episode they're only at the boiling rock one day before the cooler attempt (which we followed in our story) and then only one more until hakoda arrives. but we think that's a bit too short, especially for all we've got in mind for this story! so you'll forgive us if we made it a few days between the cooler attempt and the arrival of the new prisoners. just wanted to clarify that in case anyone was confused..._

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 10: Katara's Resolution  
**

* * *

"Where do we go now?" Sokka asked Suki as he pretended to lead the three prisoners roughly down the hall.

"To the inner open area," Suki replied, her mouth barely moving, keeping her gaze averted as she addressed her boyfriend. "They're probably doing roll call."

"Roll call?" Zuko asked.

"Yeah, roll call," Katara whispered. "That thing they do before dinner, where they call everyone's names?"

"They did that?" Zuko wondered.

"You were in the cooler," Sokka filled in quickly.

"Shh!" Katara hissed as another guard passed them.

The man was jogging, but he stopped when he saw Sokka. "Need help?" he asked his fellow guard.

"I'm alright," Sokka responded.

The guard nodded, in a hurry to be away somewhere. "Right. Then get these prisoners inside right now. This is a lock down, and roll call has already started."

"I'm on it," Sokka saluted, and the guard jogged off the way they'd come. The fake guard glanced at his friends. "We'd better hurry."

Suki and Sokka took the lead, the girl whispering directions at Sokka for when they reached roll call. Zuko's long legs carried him up the hall behind them, and Katara was left to trail. After a time, Katara glanced at Zuko. Was it just her, or had his demeanor gotten worse ever since Suki mentioned the term roll call? He looked back, noticing her watching him, and scowled before turning back up the hall. _Yep, definitely worse. _Katara had known Zuko enough to know the difference between Zuko's normal anger and when he was truly perturbed. Something was up.

But before Katara could say anything (or even decide _what _to say) they burst out of the hall and into the metallic open room where roll call was held. All the other prisoners were in their spots, and a frustrated guard, the one in charge of the prison guards no less if Katara remembered correctly, was glaring at his roll paper.

He glanced up angrily as Sokka and the rest appeared. "What's this, guard?" he demanded.

"Prisoners from the cooler and punishments decks, sir," Sokka reported smartly.

"You're late," the man snapped at Katara, Suki and Zuko. "You would do better to move more quickly in a lock down. You don't want to give us... reason to suspect you, do you?"

"No sir," all three answered, Suki straightforward, Katara reluctant, and Zuko grumpy.

"Very well, fall in. You three were late, so I can assume you would be... 16, Katara of the Water Tribe?"

"Present," Katara said as she reached her spot.

Their cell numbers were on the floor so it was easy to figure out where to go. Suki moved down the line, not too far from her, but Zuko, after watching them briefly, found his spot at the far end, almost last. Katara noticed the empty spot to her left where Chi Tzang should have been.

"Number 21, Suki, of the Island of Kyoshi?"

"Present," she responded.

Katara remembered from that morning they way they called roll - rebels by their name and home, and Fire Nation prisoners by their name and family. The prison guard glanced at Suki before checking her off too. His eyes moved down the list. "Then that leaves... Number 91, Zuko... son of Fire Lord Ozai, may he reign forever," he added, his tone amused.

Scattered mumbles went out through the prisoners. Even from her distance, Katara could see Zuko grit his teeth before answering. "Present," he choked out.

"See, it is him!"

"I _told _you earlier!"

"Did you see him fight Chi Tzang?"

"I've known it was him since he was arrested, yesterday."

"I heard he betrayed both us and the Avatar."

"What a bastard..."

"ENOUGH!" the guard's voice silenced the hall, though Katara thought she saw a pleased smirk on his face. "In this prison, you all are the same - worthless! So don't any of you forget that." He glanced at his list again. "Roll call is complete. You are all to return to your cells. Any of you may be detained for questioning at any time. Morning exercises will not be delayed. Sleep well... That is... if you can..."

* * *

The next morning came all too soon for Katara. While she had been tired enough to sleep the whole night for the first time since Zuko had joined their party, the night had simply gone too fast. Before Katara knew it, that infernal bell was ringing, and her cell was filled with light as the door automatically swung open. She didn't want to leave, but soon Suki was there, pulling on her arm.

"Come on," the girl urged her. "If we don't go, they'll come through and catch you when they sweep the cells. They let Zuko off easy yesterday since he was new, but if you miss exercises, you'll be in trouble, Katara."

Stumbling to her feet, Katara followed Suki out of her cell and joined the rest of the prisoners flooding to exercises. Which were a complete blur to her. She had no idea if she was mimicking the leader, and she thought she fell asleep once. But eventually she managed to come fully awake, and notice that Chi Tzang and his friends still weren't present. She also saw that there was a large space around Zuko, as if every prisoner was giving him a wide berth. He seemed separate from them - alone. And he didn't seem to care.

But their distance didn't last for long. As the imprisoned prince lined up to take a mop, someone bumped him - Katara didn't see who - and he fell over a bucket of dirty water, soaking his pants. No one apologized. It wasn't even clear who did it. All the prisoners stared at him as if he'd tripped over it himself, though it was obvious from the way he'd fallen, he hadn't. The other prisoners watched, some dispassionate, some mocking, others disgusted. Zuko took one look around, and ignored them all. Rising to his feet as if nothing had happened, he began moping up the spot, as if oblivious to his soaked pants. Moments later another bucket was tipped over the spot he'd just cleaned, and once again, no one owned up to it.

As he started over without a word, Katara tried to tell herself he deserved it. She tried very hard.

By the time chores were finished, she was led to her cell exhausted. Katara was hungry, tired, and still worried. Chi Tzang still hadn't shown up, and she hadn't seen Sokka all morning. Huddling herself in the corner of her cell she prayed they hadn't caught her brother. But she was too tired to pray for long. Sleep took her...

...and the bell woke her again.

Filing out like a mindless drone, she lined up for roll call. As she stepped unto her number and turned to face the prison guards leader, she felt as if she'd already done the same thing thousands of times, instead of just twice. But this time, something new caught her eye. _Chi Tzang..._

And indeed, he, his girlfriend, and his friend were all chained in what looked like a platform in the center of the open area. Their feet were bound together as they hovered over the ground, their hands roughly cuffed in chains that extended up.

"As you know," the head prison guard spoke up before starting roll call, "or maybe you don't, last night prisoners Chi Tzang, Phong, and Chinsei attempted an escape." His eyes narrowed. "And we all know what happens to people who try to escape." The threat hung in the air. "That is why," he continued, "their punishments are to be public - as a lesson to you all. Might I recommend you learn it now, because any of you could be in next."

The guard motioned a hand nonchalantly, and three of the big punishers moved forward on command, whips coming eagerly to their ready hands. Katara felt her heart thumping in her chest as they approached the people who just the evening before had been her comrades. They tore the shirts off the three with ease. The whips raised and thundered down. Screams and grunts of pain followed. Katara could feel it biting into her own back, even though no blow had fallen. This was horrible! How could anyone be treated like this? How could anyone _treat _someone like this? It was all she could do not to scream! Fire Nation or not, this was inexcusable! She felt hot tears rising to her cheeks, and her legs trembled, her whole body shaking with the overwhelming desire to do something.

Chi Tzang screamed as the whip cracked once more.

"STOP!"

For a second, Katara thought she had moved, that it was her voice that shouted out that cry. But when she heard someone grunt behind her, she turned, her head whipping around. She hadn't moved - she was still in the same spot, right on number 16, her lips pressed together tightly. Instead, the command, and the following grunts of pain, had come from Zuko.

He'd left his number, but now he was on the floor, just steps away from it, with a guard's foot slamming into his stomach repeatedly. Behind Katara, the woman Chi Tzang had brought screamed as a whip cracked across her back.

"Prince Zuko," the head guard called. "You would be wise to take your spot and watch like everyone else. Next time you make a move out of line, I will assume you wish to join them," he added, gesturing to the three whipped victims.

Zuko's glare was murderous. Katara had seen him in many unbecoming situations, but never had she seen him so livid. His scar scrunched viciously, and his unkempt hair hung over his face, making him look savage. There was already a purple bruise rising on his unscarred cheek. He looked wild, uncontrollable, and oh so very angry! But then his jaw clenched, and he struggled to his feet, one hand wrapped weakly around his side, and he stumbled back to his number. When he turned around, Katara saw it again. That wrath, still alive and very real, but suppressed, controlled. A simmering rage just under the surface of those golden eyes. He was very angry, but it didn't control him any more. Rather it looked it he controlled it.

Somehow, that made him look more frightening.

As the third recaptured prisoner screamed, Katara tore her gaze from Zuko. This was wrong, in every way cruel, but if Zuko could control himself, so could she. This was a war that needed to be fought on a different front, and no amount of struggling would stop it now. But as more tears flowed unchecked down her cheeks, Katara determined to figure out how to. It would end. Somehow, she would end it.

When it finally stopped, the guard simply began roll call, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Katara barely managed to gasp out a 'present' as he reached her number, but when they were released to go to dinner, she knew she wouldn't eat. Starving though she had been mere minutes before, she couldn't bring herself to swallow a single bite.

And dinner ended very quickly. When a prisoner complained, the guards simply laughed. "You know the drill," one of them barked. "Public punishments do not cut into roll call time or extend the time you're to be back in your cells. You prisoners act up, then it's your dinner that's cut short."

"Right," the second guard nodded at the depressed prisoner. "Don't blame us - blame those stupid runaways. They're the ones who ruined your meal."

"This sucks!" the man whined, and as he passed Chi Tzang, he spat angrily in the big man's face.

At the same moment, another Fire Nation prisoner slammed bodily into him. "Back off," the man growled. "There's nothing for you Earth Nation scum to see here."

The hungry man fumed angrily, but moved on, and Katara watched as a few of the pale skinned prisoners set up a sort of human shield around Chi Tzang and his friends. Eventually, the chains were opened by the guards, and the prisoners were thrown off the platforms. Chi Tzang managed to stand on his own, but his friends collapsed into the waiting arms of their countrymen who had stayed behind. The massive man slowly made his way to his weeping girlfriend, wrapping his arms around her. "Get to your cells," a guard barked. "The Warden still wants to see you again in the morning, Chi Tzang."

The big man snorted, and stomped away, refusing the aid of the men who had defended him. Slowly, he carried the weeping girl with care as he made his way back to the cell blocks, with Katara following a distance behind. She was shocked he could still walk, let alone carry someone. She found herself admiring his strength. Even if he was Fire Nation, she had learned a long time ago that people were people, and not everyone in this wretched prison deserved to be here.

Chi Tzang went out of his way to drop off his girlfriend, then stumbled up the steps. Katara wasn't surprised at all when she found collapsed on the floor of his room, not even bothering to reach the bed. She stopped by the door as she passed it on the way to her room. "Do you need help?" she asked kindly.

He made a deep throated laugh. "No, girly," he groaned. "I still have _some _honor."

_Honor,_ Katara scoffed, but out loud she professed, "glad to hear it."

"...Aren't you gonna ask if I ratted out you and your friends?" Chi Tzang frowned.

"Oh, ah... Did you?"

He snorted. "You didn't even think of it! You wouldn't last ten days here on your own..."

Her eyes narrowed angrily. "If you think-"

"Relax, girly. I ain't a squealer. And Phong and Chinsei don't know enough to talk." He rolled his head to look at her. "We have our pride, even here," he told her, as if it meant something huge. "Those bastards can never take that..."

But Katara was beginning to understand. "If they do?" she asked.

"Then I had better be dead," Chi Tzang replied simply. "Now go to sleep. You're bugging me."

Katara left without a word. She lay down, still worn out to the bone, but she couldn't sleep. Her mind kept tumbling through the day. Chi Tzang's pride kept running through her head as she desperately sought some way to end the horror these people suffered. How could she have been so blind? If she had left with Sokka on the cooler, would she have really never guessed what was happening? The true depths of the evil of this prison? Could she have slept peacefully, never knowing what she had turned her back on?

But it was too late now. They had stayed, and now the faces of the prisoners haunted her, chasing all notions of sleep and hunger away. In their place was a burning drive. A new sort of gleam shone in her blue eyes. This prison was a monstrosity, and it's victims were before her. She would not abandon them. This hell would not continue. Not if she had anything to say about it.

Katara was done playing by their rules.

* * *

Zuko awoke the next morning feeling worse then ever. Sleep does not come easy when your bed is made of hard, cold metal. The arrow wound he carefully tried to avoid sleeping on did not look any better either. Yet it was none of these things that he dreaded the most.

The minute he had started on the morning chores, the name calling and the sinister stares began again.

"Bastard."

"Traitor."

"Betrayer."

"Disgraceful."

"Coward."

These were just some of the colorful words that the prisoners had shared with him all that morning. He had never more wished that he was away in some uncharted place, anywhere but here. But fate and destiny were finicky mistresses, and it was their cruel jest that resulted in him being here, in the Boiling Rock. If ever he made it out of here alive he was going to have a word with those two, or whatever it was you had with cosmic powers.

But for now he took the jeers and insults with no complaints.

At least for today it had only been the name calling. Zuko knew it could have been worse. But that didn't mean he could let his guard down. He hadn't really thought of it before, but now he recalled how really big the Boiling Rock was. He hadn't seen a glimmer of Sokka all morning. And without his one trusted ally anywhere near his sights, Zuko knew he had to be on constant alert. And that was a very hard thing to do. It wasn't like he had eyes in the back of his head.

By the time dinner rolled around he was both mentally exhausted and physically, very tired.

Zuko stood in line and waited patiently for his meal. Once he got there, however, the thing he received was not what he would have called a meal, much less edible, and he was left to wonder dimly if it was supposed to be meat... But he decided he was going to take what he could get. A hungry stomach was not biased.

He looked around, trying to spot a place to sit.

Yet every time he found a hole in one of the tables, the surrounding occupants would stare at him coldly, before filling in the gaps. It was the same every time he tried. It was obvious to Zuko no one wanted him there.

Walking by the rows he considered standing while he ate, but before he could decide, someone tripped him. He hastily moved to catch himself, swinging his falling leg forward to balance the other, his so-called 'meal' still in tact.

"So is the Fire Prince a klutz as well as a traitor?" a voice shouted out, followed by roars of laughter.

"Haha! Good one, Yao!"

Zuko felt a piece of his spirit raging inside him. Telling him to give in to his wrath. He was a superb fighter. A powerful firebender. A meager prisoner like the fool before him, whose muscles had deteriorated and cramped, was nothing more then a bug he could squash in a fight. If he wanted to he could force all of them out of their tables. All he had to do was give in to his rage.

Zuko answered the thought with with nothing but silence. He was done feeding the fire of his violent side. It had never done him any good before, why should it start now?

Slowly the Fire Prince walked off, away from his tormentors.

As if Karma answered his actions, Zuko spotted an empty table. Well as empty as was it was going to get. A single man was sitting on it, eating his meal all by his lonesome.

The least he could do was try.

He slowly walked up to the man who seemed so preoccupied with what he was doing that he probably didn't even recognize Zuko talking to him.

"Mind if I sit here?"

"Huh? Who?"

Slowly the man glanced up. Zuko saw a weary face, his hair shaggy and his beard unkempt. His eyes looked like they were preoccupied with something.

"Hey... I know you," the man pointed out. "You're that traitor prince! Prince Zuko!"

And here we go again, Zuko thought.

But the man's face quirked in an extremely odd smile, raising his hands in the tradition fire nation bow. "It's an honor to meet you, your grace!"

That was the last thing Zuko had expected.

"...Huh?..."

"I never would have thought I'd get to meet you in person!" the man practically gushed. "Oh sorry about ignoring you, your highness. I wasn't really paying attention before. Please! Sit! Sit!" The man enthusiastically responded, waving his hand at the empty spot beside him.

"Uh... thanks," Zuko replied, perplexed at the man's response and behavior; he cautiously chose to sit down opposite the strange character.

"Like I said, it's a real honor to meet you, Prince Zuko. I never would have thought someone like you would be here!"

Okay, Now Zuko was really confused. "...Have we met before... by any chance?"

"No, your highness," the man assured him, bobbing his head annoyingly. He reminded Zuko of the sycophants at home, only instead of irritating him, this fool was somehow intriguing. Something was off about him... "I don't think we have. Someone of your caliber would never have met the likes of me. Name's Chey. I'm a Fire Nation soldier... that is I used to be... until I deserted."

"...I see..." Zuko calmly played with his food, speculating at how such a talkative man could have been one of their soldiers.

"Anyway it's all in the past now," Chey shrugged it off. "Nothing I could do about it. But its a real honor to meet you, Prince, sir. "

"Why do you keep saying that?" Zuko had to ask.

The jeers and insults he could take. Praise was the last thing he would have expected people to give to him. And intriguing or not, he already sensed that the man could get annoying.

"Saying what?" Chey asked.

"That. An honor to meet me."

"And why not, your grace? It's not every day that I get to meet with the only man to have both stood face to face against the Fire Lord AND have traveled with the Avatar!"

It all made sense to Zuko now. The man was a rambling idiot. He had to be crazy to say those things.

But still, at this time, a friend was a friend. "...Well I'd appreciate it if you stop saying it..." Zuko answered as softly as he could, keeping his tone nonchalant. "...It's nothing."

"Nothing? Why that's ridiculous! Everyone knows about your duel with Fire Lord Ozai."

"Duel?" All Zuko remembered was redirecting the lightning his father had aimed at him and then escaping from the Imperial city.

"Yeah. They said it was a firebending match the likes of which have not been seen in over a millenia. They say it was legendary!" The man waved wildly, his arms exaggeratedly mimicking an exploding motion.

"Well you're mistaken... there's nothing legendary about my actions. Hell, there's nothing even heroic about it," Zuko replied bitterly.

"Now, now," the man soothed him. "No need to play the humble card, your highness. But I can play along if that's what you like." Chey grinned.

_Yes, _Zuko thought as he watched the lopsided grin, _he's definitely going to get annoying._

"So, about running with the Avatar? How is the little bald kid doing? Are you teaching him firebending? He struggles with that..."

The Fire Prince raised his eyebrow in suspicion. "How do you know all that?"

"I've met the young Avatar before. Travels with a pretty young lass and a goofy looking warrior. Water Tribe, I think." Chey paused for a minute, considering, before continuing on. "Anyway, he was suppose to learn firebending from Jeong Jeong."

Now that was something that caught Zuko's attention. Everyone in the Fire Nation has heard of the Deserter. "Wait... you know Jeong Jeong?"

Chey smiled proudly. "Damn straight I know Jeong Jeong. He was my master. I used to work for him; one of his scouts and spies. Until they left me though... that's when I got caught." Chey rubbed the back of his neck, as if he was embarrassed. "Jeong Jeong did say I was about as stealthy as a giant saber tooth moose-lion."

_More like as simple-minded as one,_ Zuko corrected.

"So are you the Avatar's firebending teacher then?" Chey pressed the question.

Zuko was not one to give out such a complicated and secret answer that easily. Especially to someone he had just met - even if the man looked jovially innocent. "What if I am?" he mused calmly, waiting for Chey's reaction.

"Then that's great," the man enthused. "Jeong Jeong would be proud."

Zuko couldn't help but look at this strange man with awe. Here he was, in the worst possible place for a traitor Prince like himself, and here was a guy who was _actually_ praising him for his actions. Zuko didn't know what to say. So he said nothing.

Just then he heard a clang, as if someone else had tripped and tipped over their meal. Sure enough, he spotted an old man not far from where he sat, his meal scattered all over the floor, trying desperately to get up.

"Are you alright, sir? Here let me help you."

As Zuko glanced around for the source of the helpful person, he realized it was Katara's gentle voice offering assistance to the fallen older man. She carefully made her way towards the fellow, gently helping him to his feet.

Zuko's eyes carefully watched Katara. Knowing she probably was in no mood to see him, he kept quiet as he stirred the contents of his bowl.

"Hey, that's the waterbending lass I was just talking about awhile ago," Chey happily pointed out. "Why didn't you tell me she was here too?"

Zuko decided to ignore him, turning his attention back to Katara discretely. As the blue-eyed girl moved towards the downed man, one of the prisoners, a big man with matching scars on his face, stepped resolutely between them.

"What's this?" he asked, crossing his arms as he peered down at Katara menacingly. "What's a pretty little thing like you want with old Zan?" Katara's eyes narrowed angrily, but she didn't answer. The big man's mouth quirked. Then he grinned wickedly. "Come to stare at my scars have you? You're a little too young for my taste, but I'm not picky." The scarred man eyed Katara from head to toe.

"I saw what you did back there," she said in a chastising voice Zuko knew all too well. "You tripped this poor old man."

"And what if I did? He's just some bum from the Earth Kingdom."

"He's not your enemy," Katara stated sternly.

"Oh? And who is?" Scarred Zan was obviously not intimated by the lithe waterbending girl, but neither did she seem at all scared of him.

Her jaw set, and Zuko felt an outburst coming. "You're wasting your time picking on your fellow prisoners when you could be fighting back against those who are really oppressing you!" she laid into him.

Chey looked intently at the unfolding scene, both curious and frightened at what was happening. "What is she doing?"

Zuko glared at her, for once in agreement with the crazy man. "Getting into trouble," he answered, "that's what."

The big man was staring at Katara as if she'd slapped him. He looked perplexed, as if unable to wrap his mind around what she'd just said. But she wasn't done with just that. "You people are ridiculous," she growled. "Not just you," she added, glaring at the man again. "All of you!"

Before Zuko knew what was happening, Katara had climbed up on one of the tables, not caring at the wild stares she was getting, but rather, seeming to invite them. "Fellow prisoners!" she called loudly. "What has happened to all of you?! Look at yourselves! All weary and broken! You sit there and take your punishments like well trained dogs, until you don't have the strength to even think like men! And yet you all still manage to find the drive to hate one another. Fire Nation against Earth Kingdom, loyalists versus traitors. You're bickering amongst yourselves, like a pack of jackal-hyenas, when you should be working together!"

The prisoners stared at her silently, a mixture of expressions on their faces, mainly shock, confusion, and affrontation. But it wasn't the prisoners who seemed to understand the meaning behind her words. "Hey you! What do you think you're doing?!" A prison guard bellowed, walking furiously towards Katara, who was doing her best in ignoring the man.

"Look at us!" she pressed on resolutely. "Look at how these guards look down on us like a bunch of animals!" Katara accused angrily as she pointed at the guard.

"That's plenty from you, girl!" the guard growled, as he signaled for reinforcement.

"When will you tell yourself enough is enough?!" she demanded, unchecked. "How long is it going to take before all of you just rot off and die? Three years? Ten years? You all know none of us will survive this prison that long."

"Alright, that's enough!" Three burly prison guards moved to subdue the waterbender, who struggled ferociously before their grip.

"G-guh! Hold still you little b-"

"Make me!" Katara grunted as she managed to slip one of her hands away by elbowing the guard right in the ribs.

Zuko couldn't believe this girl. How stupid could she get? Yet deep down, his own body urged him to move and help her. It was taking all of his restraint to not do so. He prayed Katara would stand down from her sudden madness.

Two more guards came and pinned her arms, leaving Katara helpless.

"What's your number?!" one of them shouted.

Katara answered with only an icy glare.

The guard then took her arm harshly, revealing her wristband. "Number 16, eh? Well I'll be sure to remember that. Lock her up back in her cell until we know what to do with her."

The others complied as they began to drag Katara off, who was struggling every step of the way.

Then she was gone from his sight.

Zuko silently stared at his meal for a second before glancing around. There was no talking, no murmur, no nothing. As if everyone had been struck dumb. Zuko wondered if they were busy contemplating what Katara had said, or if they didn't care. But the silence was oppressive, and it hung in the air like guilt.

"Hey..." Chey whispered. "Your waterbender girl is in a lot of trouble. Causing a scene like that, I'd say the punishers are gonna pay her a visit tonight."

Zuko didn't reply.

"Well? Aren't you going to help her?"

Finally the Fire Prince stood up, deciding he wasn't that hungry after all.

"...How can I..." he wondered aloud as he walked off, back to his cell.


	11. Chapter 11:Prince

Author's Note:

**Trombe: This chapter was probably my most favorite to write up to this point. Its sort of the revelation kind of thing. Don't worry readers, we won't disappoint you. I think we know what we're doing here.  
**

_artsyelric: wow, this story is getting dark. the whipping scene trombe added is scary, but i kinda like it... oO... don't worry readers, our boiling rock remake is dark, but we have some fun, light scenes planned too! won't give away anything, but... XDDD  
_

_anyway, i like this chapter. i think it really gives us insight into the characters. you really get to see katara's passion, and zuko's pride - the aspects they (would) love about each other. it's called prince, but katara is really awesome in it too! i had so much fun writing it. enjoy!_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 11: Prince  
**

* * *

Going back to the cell was a mistake. The minute he had finished his food and returned to find some small piece of mind, Sokka came barging in. Zuko was really in no mood to face the anxious Water Tribe boy at all, especially since he already had an inkling as to what Sokka had come to see him about.

"Suki told me everything. Did you hear what happened to Katara?" Sokka asked hastily.

Zuko motioned for him to keep his voice down. The doors of the cells were all open until dinner was officially complete. Anyone passing by would be suspicious of a fidgeting prison guard and an exiled (and hated) prince talking together. At first Zuko was tempted to tell the other boy so, and try and get some much needed rest, but Sokka was still his only real ally, and he could see how worried the anxious warrior was about his sister. "I was there," Zuko answered flatly, deciding to deal with the paniced boy and his troublesome sister after all.

"...What? You were there? Then... Why didn't you do anything?!" Sokka's eyes lit with suspicion and suppressed anger under his helm, and he moved with surprising speed, closing the gap between them as he grabbed onto Zuko's shirt.

"What could I have done Sokka?!" Zuko defended himself, blinking at how riled up his friend was. "What your sister did was insane! For anyone! What was I suppose to do, get up there and try to talk her out of it? Cause you know I'm really good at that when it comes to Katara. It's just futile talking to her..." Zuko concluded sarcastically.

"You could have helped her!" Sokka pressed on, still not letting go.

"How? How?!" The Fire Prince grabbed Sokka's prison guard robe with equal measure, as the two boys began to stare each other down. One pair of eyes covered in unfaltering steel, the other's burn scar making his glare ferocious. "I'm not some... some... fairytale prince off to rescue a fair maiden! Stuff like that just gets you killed here."

"But you _are_ a prince!"

"That's _not_ the point!" Zuko angrily corrected.

"A good friend would have stopped her!" Sokka insisted.

"Since when have I been her friend?" he demanded. "Besides... maybe I thought what she had to say was worth it."

"Katara always has something to say," her brother griped.

"I know." Zuko could see both of them were getting pretty riled up. Taking one final breath, he let go of Sokka, who, after a moment, did the same. The warrior even had the shame to look a bit abashed. The exiled prince then turned his back, his hand against the wall. "How am I suppose to do anything about it when your sister doesn't even want me near her?"

Sokka, finally realizing his own foolishness, calmed down as well. "Look, I'm just kind of... mad right now. I guess at myself or maybe at Katara, I don't know. I... I shouldn't have brought her here at all. At the very least, I should have been there. Maybe I could have done something."

"Or maybe you could have done nothing. Who knows..." Zuko brushed his hands through his hair. "I've bled, bruised, and risked my life to try and help Katara. And still... still she hates me. It's kind of hard to help someone who's not willing to cooperate." Zuko wanted to end that with a mocking laugh but found no strength to do so. "'Course, I'd probably still hate me too..."

Sokka made a disgruntled sound, and Zuko looked up at him, meeting those blue eyes, bright even behind the helmet's visor. He pictured himself in the Water Tribe warrior's place, and tried to imagine what he would have felt if a person close to him was threatened with bodily harm. While Zuko could not fully understand what Sokka was feeling, he respected and accepted what a brother might have done to protect his sibling. It seemed such a long time ago, but he had felt that same way when Azula was born. Before her true monstrous nature became apparent.

"...You know I would have done something if I could," Zuko told Sokka, trying to express with his tone how much he meant it.

Sokka stood there in silence, and for a moment, Zuko wondered if the boy had heard him. Finally, he slumped to the ground, pounding the adjacent wall near him with one fist before sighing. "I know."

Frustrated, the two just stared aimlessly at the space before them.

"Katara is suppose to receive five lashes of the whip tonight," Sokka stated as calmly as he could, only a slight tremor in his voice. "One of the prison guards is suppose to report her number to the punishers later on, when dinner is over."

Zuko listened without a word.

"I won't let that happen. Not to Katara." Sokka voice was filled with resolve.

The prince sighed. If they were going to make a plan, they didn't have much time. Zuko had already wolfed down his own dinner, so the allowed meal time would soon be over. Then it'd be back to the cells with everyone for the lock down. They had to think of something, and quick.

But, despite Sokka's resolve, the worried brother was in no state to think clearly. He was just wringing his hands and muttering to himself. Zuko snorted. If a plan was to be formed, it looked like he would be the one to start thinking of it. He rubbed his chin and contemplated the situation for a while, trying to get an idea of what they could do. "If I remember correctly," he recalled, "from when we both made those rounds inspecting the guards, the punishment system works like this: The prison guards jot down the number of the offending prisoner, and then the report is sent back to the barracks. With me so far?"

Sokka thought for a second before nodding in agreement with Zuko. "Yeah. I remember the board where the guards store those numbers. The Warden, or more commonly the Deputy Chief, have to sign it with their seals before those orders are carried out. Then they put the numbers on a board, and the punishers go around in the night to all the cell numbers on the tile board."

Zuko nodded. "So, all the punishers have to go on is a number tile right?"

Sokka pondered that for a moment, then seemed to catch Zuko's drift. "We could change her number!" he exclaimed.

"Right," Zuko agreed, thinking it through. "But we can't just change Katara's number. Not randomly anyway. Another prisoner could get her lashes, but-"

"-they're going to say they did nothing wrong," Sokka finished for Zuko. "That'll probably raise a few eye brows..."

"And we can't just make her sentence vanish like that," the prince remarked, snapping his fingers. "Those guards will think something's up if a number tile just disappears..."

They were running out of options. Zuko and Sokka both knew what it had to come down to. The sentence _must_ be carried out. But what could they changer her number to without alerting the guards? And who would take extra lashes without reporting it...

The Fire Prince rubbed his temple in a slow and steady rhythm. What he was about to suggest bordered into insanity, but he figured he must be at least half mad to even say it. Still, it was beginning to look like there was no other way. "Katara's prison number is number 16, right?"

"Yeah..." Sokka acknowledged, puzzled. He wasn't quite sure where Zuko was going with this. "What's your point?"

Zuko took a hard look at him. "You're always going off on how you're the plan guy. Figure it out."

Sokka mused the comment over before it became all too clear to him. "...Are you really say-"

"Flip the number." Zuko said, simply.

"But...that's-"

"91. The number will be 91."

Sokka continued to stare in disbelief, glancing between Zuko and his cell door, dumbfounded.

"That's me, Sokka," Zuko answered for him.

"But- but you... wah! That's crazy!" the blue eyed warrior stuttered stupidly, having finally found his voice.

"Don't tell me that. I _know_ its crazy. But look at it! The punishers don't really know much other then who they are suppose to give out the punishment to, and that only by number. They're not like the prison guards who interact with us all day. The punishers have one job: punish. All the prisoners are the same to them." Sokka's arms fell to his side in aghast defeat. Zuko smiled grimly. "At least this way no one else gets hurt and Katara doesn't blow her cover by having someone squeal."

Sokka looked at the exiled prince, who was already in pain from an arrow wound that hadn't healed properly, plus sporting a bruised cheek and bags under his eyes from fatigue. "But... why?" Sokka asked genuinely, with newfound respect for his scarred companion.

The Fire Prince had no answer to that. A vision swirled in his head, of Katara angrily glaring at the guards as they shackled her to the wall. Of them pulling the shirt off her back as she struggled uselessly. He watched the whip crack down on her mocha skin, leaving angry wounds that cried in blood red. He could just imagine those ice blue eyes cringing in pain. As the image unfolded, Zuko could do nothing to stop it. And for whatever reason, that thought disgusted him the most.

"Cause I'm a glutton for pain," he replied back, dryly, keeping his thoughts to himself.

The bell tolled, signaling the end of dinner, and Sokka gave Zuko a confused look, before slipping out the closing door. The cell closed with an ominous boom, sealing Zuko in the darkness, and the bell died out.

At least, this way, he was stopping his vision.

* * *

Despite the window in his cell door, the darkness felt oppressive. It was inside him, as well as out, his constant companion. His uncle had said that there was a great struggle within him, good and evil, dark and light. He was all too aware of the dark now, as he waited, endlessly.

But he was doing this because it was right. He wanted to feed that light side, the good part of him. _So why do I feel so dark? _he wondered.

Alone, darkness seemed even bleaker. He remembered the cell he'd shared with Katara. It had been just as dark, since the upper prisoners cells were inside, away from sunlight. But it hadn't seemed as dim. No where near it in fact. There had been a pair of clear blue eyes that shone even in the dank cell with him then. Katara's eyes had been all the light he'd needed...

Katara's eyes, which saw his light back in Ba Sing Se before anyone else but Uncle had.

Katara's eyes, which now saw every shameful dark thought that crossed his mind.

Sighing, he tried to put her from his mind. Instead, Zuko patiently waited for any slight sound outside of his cell, his senses heightened, his heart beat erratic from sheer nervousness and anxiety.

He knew what was about to happen, and yet it did not stop a small part of him wishing that Sokka had not gone through with it. That somehow the Water Tribe warrior had gotten one of his lucky genius streaks again and would come up with something that didn't involve in getting anyone whipped. Him particularly.

What would Uncle do? Zuko asked himself, feeling a little bit hopeless. He closed his eyes, hoping to hear the voice of Uncle Iroh, filled with wisdom, echo in his mind.

_Sometimes, Nephew, _he imagined his uncle saying,_ we do things that ask of us something we normally would not do. It is a great mystery of life, these human urges of ours. When we do such a thing, we can only look forward to the future with no regret, as it leaves us a better understanding of who we are._

There were times when he could not make heads or tails of the majority of things his Uncle spoke about, but the old man's words always left something to think on, and with time, he understood them more. For a tiny, meager moment there, Zuko felt he understood just a little bit of what his Uncle had spent years trying to teach him.

What was done, was done. He would learn from it later. It could no longer be changed.

And so he sat, cross-legged on the floor, his palms interlocking, as he began to meditate, understanding coming to him in waves. There was no use in worrying or regretting. All he could do now was face the ordeal at hand with some fire in his eyes.

As if on cue, the cell door opened ominously, the air unexpectedly chilly for a summer night. Two punishers stood there, wearing their unique black helms obviously a sign to differentiate them from the rest of the guards. The black metal glinted wickedly in the half light.

"Prisoner number 91, I presume?" one of them mockingly smiled. "We've come bearing gifts for you."

If that comment was suppose to intimidate him, Zuko did not show it. "What took you guys so long?" He taunted. If they were going to punish him for something he was going to make sure he acted the part properly. "I've been waiting."

"Heh. Insolence." One of them grunted before giving Zuko a quick backhand across his face, sending him sprawling. Still defiant as ever, Zuko's golden eyes did not yield as he pushed himself up. But before he could rise, the two guards grabbed his wrists carelessly, yanking him off the ground. Despite his resolution, he felt his body tremble slightly as both of the guards lifted and cuffed him to the shackles on his wall, his bareback facing towards them. As Zuko stretched his feet, searching for the floor, the guard finished his thought. "With a mouth like yours, I'm not surprised you've already earned the lash."

The second one took something out of his hand, a little piece of wood wrapped in soft cloth.

Zuko saw the object and then laughed weakly, his cheek stinging from the blow, his wrists chafing in the handcuffs. "I'm no dog..."

The man with the small mouthpiece looked at his equally big counterpart before grinning. "Before we're done you're gonna wish you were one..." But he put the thing away and he nodded, signaling the other one to begin. "If you bite your tongue," the man warned, "don't blame us. "

The first punisher uncoiled the whip that wrapped around his belt, its thick coils falling to the metal floor with a heavy sound. "Five lashes," he said simply.

Zuko gritted his teeth.

"One." With that he threw the whip back and lashed out in full fury, the whip making a cracking sound so loud it echoed in the small cell.

Zuko's eyes shot open as he felt the full first blow of the weapon. His mouth went wide, begging him to howl, to raise his voice in pain. But he somehow choked the cry back. He was not about to let these wolves have the pleasure of hearing him scream.

"A sturdy one, eh? We haven't had one of your kind in a long time," the man with the whip pondered, his voice disgustingly excited. "Well then... lash number two."

A second one followed and Zuko thought it couldn't possibly hurt more the second time around. He realized he was sorely mistaken when the whip made its second mark. His head whipped back in shock again, his muscles tensing. The feeling of his blood slowly trickling down his back was warm, and stinging.

"Well, well," the second punisher whispered, taunting him. "Royal blood does bleed the same. That one felt kind of painful Prince Zuko, so why don't you scream? It'll make you feel better."

Again the whip struck, and again Zuko refused to yield. Despite how much agony he was in, cold sweat ran rampant down his face.

"You're making me angry, number 91," the second punisher warned. "There is a pleasure in screams I enjoy. " Zuko was glad he couldn't see the guard's face. "Choi, again."

The fourth lash could have easily been the most painful experience Zuko had in his entire life. This indeed felt like hell.

"Once more."

The last one lashed with so much force that the whip actually made a huge gash wound that started from the back of his shoulder blades to his spine.

As strong-willed as Zuko was, he was sure this pain was beyond mere human tolerance, and a slight gasp escaped his mouth. Somehow, that seemed to pacify his tormentors.

"Well that wasn't a scream," the one called Choi deduced, "but it's a start. Hopefully that'll teach you a lesson you can think of before you break any more of our rules, scum."

"But if you haven't learned," the other man warned, "we'll be sure to hear you scream next time."

The two shared a cruel laugh before unfastening the cuffs that held Zuko in place. Without their strength to hold him up, he fell to the ground with a thud, his legs now shaking horribly from the experience.

And as silently as they came the punishers left. The cell door behind them closed, leaving Zuko bleeding profusely.

The Fire Prince tried to move, yet he had no command over his body. Pain and shock had taken over. He had to struggle not to vomit.

_Aww... is that all my precious older brother can take? Is that it, Zuzu? So soon?..._ Delirium must have set in, for Zuko swore he could hear Azula's cold voice, swore that she was in the same room as he was. His vision blurry, he thought he barely made out her slim frame. _Only five lashes, Zuzu, _she whispered, almost caring, except those golden eyes never hid their malice, which he would never forget. Reaching out his palm as it shook, he tried to make his way to her, crawling and dragging his bleeding body, but her phantom figure just laughed cruelly.

Dream took mercy upon the agonized prince, and he blacked out from the pain, his mind taking refuge inside his unconsciousness.

* * *

They had to physically drag Zuko out of his cell the next morning, tossing him into the open area for all to see. Zuko struggled to stand, not wanting anyone to know what he had done, what had been done to him. It would just give them more cause to pick on him.

At least he'd managed to dress himself before he'd been expelled from his room. The blood on his back had dried and caked up, and he wondered how exactly he'd managed his prison shirt, when even the slightest pressure on his back caused him to buckle with pain. He was even more impressed now by Chi Tzang's actions the night before, standing and carrying someone after his beating... The man must be amazing. _Or, _Zuko thought with a shudder, _used to it..._

The morning was torture. Between his side and back, it ached just to walk properly. He eyed the prison guards that kept watch. Those sadistic animals, he thought. They left him in his cell to bleed. Not once had somebody come to tend to his wounds. Zuko then realized the extent of the Boiling Rock's cruelty. If it wasn't for his strong desire to live, he doubted if he would even have opened his eyes one more time.

People died in the Boiling Rock, plain and simple. He knew that now.

But even knowing, he could do nothing to stop it. Every day, he felt more powerless. He felt his pride seeping away.

Somehow he got through chores, staying as far from everyone as possible so no one would notice his pain, or do anything more vicious to him. Being hated by e_veryone _made everything harder. But at least he hadn't seen Katara...

When they finished chores, the prisoners were offered water. Zuko took his back to his cell and tried very hard to at least clean his lash wounds. He didn't get very far; pain shot through him every time he tried to reach around his back to wash the cuts. It was a futile attempt. One Zuko knew to just give up on.

Instead, he just collapsed on his bed, not even bothering with his shirt. His face pressed into the course mattress, as he tried to decide if he was more hungry or tired. Sleep came before he could make up his mind.

When the infernal tolling bell woke him up again, Zuko was still plagued with the fiery pain on his back, but he felt stronger, and fiercely hungry. Rising, he carefully pulled on his shirt, and dumped his bloody water before making his way to his number, keeping his face as straight as possible.

As he left his cell, his eyes turned automatically to where Katara lined up. His breath caught as he met her deep blue eyes and realized she'd been watching him. He glanced away quickly, and moved to his number. Someone bumped him as he went, but he bit back his pained shout, still determined to hide his whipping least the guards, or some wretched prisoner, put two and two together. Catching his balance, he moved on quietly to his spot.

When he looked up, he saw her gaze was following him, and she was frowning angrily. At first he thought it was at him, the expression was so familiar, but then he realized it was at the man three numbers over, the one who'd bumped him. Katara was glaring at the Fire Nation prisoner as if he'd spit in her face.

Fortunately for Zuko, roll call began before Katara could open her mouth. The man he was so used to seeing now, the Deputy Chief, began calling off names as usual. Today was a standard roll call, brief, with no public punishments to be administered, leaving time for a full meal. Zuko was shocked to realize he was looking forward to the disgusting prison food. They called Zuko's name finally, and then the last two men with higher cell numbers than him, and then the prisoners were finally released to dinner.

Zuko was determined to eat as much as he could before the end of dinner bell tolled, signaling the prisoners to return to their cells before the doors closed for the night. Filling his plate with food, he edged around the crowd to an empty table where he saw Chey, glad no one had tripped him and ruined his meal. He was ravenous.

"Hey-hey, Prince!" Chey greeted him, but Zuko sat and began shoving the food into his face gracelessly, without so much as a hello. "Sorry, your highness," Chey bobbed his head. "Didn't know you were that hungry."

Chey glanced down at his own, half finished plate, then pushed it disinterestedly towards Zuko. Zuko stopped chewing to stare at the crazy man. "What's this for?" he asked, swallowing.

"No offense, my prince, but you look like you could use it more than me."

Zuko stared at the charity, feeling what remained of his pride stir angrily. "Eat your food, fool." His voice was so dispassionate Mai would have been proud.

"But wouldn't it be quite an honor to tell my grandchildren one day that I shared a meal with Prince Zuko?" the man idealized.

"I don't think that this is exactly what people mean when they say that," Zuko pointed out. But Chey just stared at him, and eventually, Zuko's hunger gave out. "Thanks," he said, simply, digging in to the other man's plate.

"Hey, what are friends for?"

Zuko stared at him, but decided it was safer not to answer.

Just as he was finishing Chey's dinner, he heard the one thing he had been most desperately praying he wouldn't. Behind him, people's voices raised. It wasn't someone coming to pick on him, or even a guard to give him a harder time than he was already having. It was worse.

Katara was angrily berating a man in the center of the room, a green-eyed earth bender who had tipped a plate of food out of a pale-skinned Fire Nation woman's gasp. The waterbender jabbed her fingers into the man's chest angrily. Heads turned around the mess hall, as if hoping for a repeat from the night before. "I saw that!" Katara accused. "What, do you think bullying a woman who did nothing to you makes you better?" she asked, stabbing him with her fingertips again. "Do you feel better? Prouder? Stronger?"

"Back off, you crazy!" The earthbender grabbed at Katara's wrist angrily, but as his hand went to close around hers, she drew her arm nimbly back, her fingers slipping through his hands like the water she commanded with them.

She batted his hand away in the direction it was already going with a firm left handed sweep, and her fingers slipped straight back in, jabbing the man again as she reputed his actions. "Now you want to pick a fight with me?" she hollered. "You people are a walking shame to your nations."

"Katara, stop it," Suki insisted, grabbing her friend's arm. "He's a rebel, like us," she pointed out.

"I don't care who he is!" Katara rejected her friend. "This has got to stop!"

Zuko noticed that the doors opened and a few more guards slipped into the mess hall, looking curiously for the source of the racket. By this point, most of the prisoners were keenly interested as well. Zuko wanted to rush over and stop her before things got worse, but he knew if Suki couldn't do it, he didn't stand a chance.

"Katara," Suki hissed, pulling her friend away from the big man. "Be quiet!"

But Katara slipped her arm out of her friend's embrace and climbed onto a table. "No, I will not be quiet!" she cracked at Suki, rising to a standing position in the center of the room.

"No, please," Zuko whispered desperately, feeling his nightmare start again.

"Prisoners!" she called out, her voice piercing through the crowd, cutting into all conversations, and upstaging even the ravenous desire to eat. "Every night you act the same! How can you live like this?"

"Girl, get down from there!" a guard barked.

Katara ignored him. "Look around; look at yourselves! Powerful earthbenders, brave warriors, proud firebenders!" Some prisoners turned towards her, perking at the praise. "What a joke."

Her statement sliced coldly through the crowd. People muttered angrily, confused by how she praised them one minute, and tore into them the next. But Katara plowed over them, keeping them confused, but recapturing the attention she'd started to loose. "You people are the stuff legends are made from," she told them. "Your families are at home, perhaps praying for you, or telling stories of your greatness, but all wishing you were there with them. What will they say about you? What will they remember?" Eyes watched her doubtfully, remembering their own families, and mulling over her questions in their head.

Zuko tried to keep his eyes on the guards milling at the door, but he couldn't help but hear her words. He wondered what his family would remember about him, and tried to imagine someone missing him, like he missed his mother, or his uncle...

Katara cut through their thoughts, not allowing them to finish. "But while your families are at home, wishing for you, you're here, rotting away in this place, lashing at each other like scorpion-rats. Pathetic." Her voice bit into them cruelly.

"Shut your mouth, girl," a big fire nation man declared, standing suddenly. Zuko noticed after a moment that he was the one who tripped the old man from last night. "Even criminals like us don't deserve to be clumped in here with scum like those earthbenders!"

Katara's eyes flashed as they turned on him. Every body in the hall was still, watching the confrontation, sensing the tension between the two. It felt like lightning crackled in Katara's eyes. "You're a criminal?" she echoed him, and the man paused at how rigid her voice was. She seemed so intense, poised there, her glare strong and her jaw set, but her voice was deadly calm, and so quiet, the whole room seemed to lean forward to hear it. "So you committed a crime?"

The Fire Nation man glanced around him as everyone's eyes pressed in on him, and he turned back towards the waterbender. "That's what they tell me," he said, after a moment.

"What did you do?" Katara asked, her voice quiet, drawing in people's attention.

A guard started pushing towards the crowd. "I told you to get down from there, woman!" he commanded, signaling two guards to back him up as he headed for Katara.

"What was your crime?" Katara repeated, and Zuko suddenly felt as if he was hanging on her words.

"I..." the big man stuttered. "I lost a battle."

Her eyebrow quirked. "Really." Suddenly her arm spun around, almost one eighty, her finger pointing straight at the old man Zuko had seen passing out mops. The rest of her body hadn't moved. She didn't even look as her finger landed on him. The silence was more intense than anything. Zuko thought he could have heard a beetle-fly's wing flap. "Why are you here?" she asked the earthbender.

"I'm a prisoner," the man replied, as if wary of a trick. "My people... were defeated."

Katara still didn't take her eyes off the Fire Nation man, holding him a frozen captive with her stare. Her finger spun again, causing Zuko's heart to jump, and some of the crowd to gasp slightly. Zuko realized dimly he wasn't caring about the guard or punishment any more. He was completely hooked on Katara's speech, his eyes following her swinging hand intently. It stopped on Suki, standing beside her. "Why are you here?" she asked.

"Katara, you know-"

"Suki," she cut her friend off in that deadly serious voice. "Answer the question: Why are you here?"

Suki sighed. "My Kyoshi warriors and I lost a fight."

This whole time, her crackling gaze had never left the big Fire Nation man. Zuko had never seen a crowd so enraptured. They leaned forward, as if dying to hear her next words. The prince realized he wanted to hear them too.

A small smile lifted Katara's lips as she addressed the big warrior. "And you think you're so different." She finally broke gaze with the man, turning angrily to everyone. "All of you! You all think you're so different - better than the next person! You think asserting your dominance over them will some how make your shame less? You are all here for the same reason! You, the man next to you, the woman across the room! Me! We are all the same! This man is Fire Nation, that one an earthbender, and this girl's a Kyoshi warrior - but they are all here, in this bloody place, for the same reason - they lost! So can you tell me, prisoners, which is better than the other?"

The people stared at her until she answered her own rhetorical question. "None of them is any better. We are all here now, so we are all the same. If you believe any different, you are deceiving yourself."

Her words seemed so right. Though she was angry, hadn't she just proved her point? Who could argue it? She'd just spelled out what they had always known, what they hadn't wanted to see.

And everyone knew it. Zuko could see it on their faces.

The first guard scrambled across a table, holding up a warning hand to Katara. "Stop this insolence, child!" he commanded, his tone very upset.

But Katara continued to act as if he didn't exist. "Nobody here is any different from anyone else!" she plunged on. "You are the same! Prisoners! Every day these guards fight to take your spirit away," she declared, her finger swinging to the guard before her, who stiffened, alarmed at being involved in her dynamic address. "Every day they do everything they can to inspire your hatred of each other, and your self loathing! And every day, you let them!" Accusation dripped from her voice like venom from a fang.

But then her tone changed, catching the prisoners off guard again, drawing them deeper into her story. She lifted her arms slightly as she spoke, and her voice rung with honesty, with hope. In sharp contrast to the anger she'd just unleashed, she now looked like a benevolent spirit. And when she opened her mouth, people listened.

"When I came to this prison just a few days ago, I didn't have a full understanding of what pride was. But I have started to understand it more and more. Chi Tzang had pride! When I saw him yesterday I knew. I may not know what pride means, but this is true. People fight and die for it. Who? You people! You are here, in the upper cells, because you have pride - because they want to break you! You are politicians, and warriors, you are benders, and leaders. You are here because you are brave, smart, strong, courageous, kind, heroic or somehow special. You are here because the Fire Nation fears you enough to hold you here. In this prison, horrible though it may be, I thought that among you, the people they fear, I would find pride."

Her voice sounded like she was telling them a tragedy, a story about someone she wept for, someone who failed her. Zuko felt a part of his heart go out to her, and to the people she was talking so sadly about. As he did, he realized those people were all around him. He turned to look at the crowd, and he saw other prisoners doing the same.

The faces were somehow different now. As they looked to one another, lost, sad and confused, Zuko sensed the hurt there. They had all been hurt, like he was now. They had stood where he stood, felt his fear and pain. They all felt the same shame, and the same cruel fate crushed them all. As he met their eyes, suddenly he knew; these were his people. Faces turned towards him, from every nation, but he knew, somehow, they were all his. His people, as he was their prince.

And, without realizing it, a camaraderie was suddenly sparked. Every prisoner that met another's eyes felt it. Enemies or not, Katara had somehow made them one.

Her gaze hardened, and she spoke again, breaking them out of the momentary epiphany. "There are some of you who still have that will! Some of you who still fight! But when I look around me now, what I see here are not proud people," she cried. "What I see are horrible little children squabbling amongst themselves!" Even though Zuko had done nothing against anyone yet, he felt the shame of her words drop over the crowd. They were confused. They were being strung along by her words, and the only way out was for her to tell them what to do. All eyes turned to her, and she spoke strong, each sentence resounding in Zuko's very soul. "Do you even remember what it feels like to fight?" she asked. "Or have they stolen that from you too?"

She turned to the crowd, addressing everyone, but meeting each desperate gaze individually. There was such profound beauty in her visage, that when her gazed passed over Zuko, he found he couldn't tear his eyes away. "Where has your pride gone, firebenders?" she pleaded. "Where lies your strength, men of the earth?" Her eyes darted across her listeners. "Has no one the courage to fight?"

No one answered.

"What would you have them do?" the guard finally barked, even he feeling captivated by her words. "In this prison, you all are scum! How do you expect scum to fight?"

"This isn't a battle against your fortress," Katara replied haughtily. "This is a battle, each day, for the little things. This is a battle for pride! For life!" she shouted, turning to the prisoners again.

This was it, Zuko realized. This was the answer! She knew what it was these people were missing, what was he was missing. What his people needed.

"What do we do?" someone called desperately from the prisoners.

Katara fisted the air, punctuating every line. "Each time they knock you down, stand up! Each time they strike you, hold back your cries! Each time they pit you against each other, see through their traps, your differences, and rise above this!" Zuko couldn't believe how simple she made it seem - how possible. People were gaping, drinking it in like water to a dying man. She spun, so she could see them all, her voice ringing through the metal hall. "While we are here, there is no war of earth and fire - there is only one battle; this place, against all our pride combined. And as long as we fight that battle, they can never win!"

Suddenly, the prisoners cheered. Not everyone, but enough. The call was weak at first, but it grew, like a wave, and soon everyone was shouting.

They guard gaped. Clenching his jaw, he turned angrily to the waterbender. "That's quite enough from you!"

He grabbed her arm and began pulling her. But she did not give up, proving to them with her own struggle that they could do it, that she was with them. "Each day is a fight!" she continued as the man struggled to drag her off the table. "Each breath is you refusing to die, and each day you live is another step towards freedom." Some people cheered again.

"Stop her!" the guard waved at his friends.

"Anyone can make a difference," she shouted as they finally hauled her off the table. "Each and every one of you has to fight your own personal battle!"

"Take her to her cell!" The guards struggled to obey, tugging a struggling Katara through the tables. "I will speak to the Deputy Chief about her punishment."

As the guards pushed her across the room, some prisoners reached out to touch her. Zuko could see tears in a few people's eyes. A plate fell from a table, smashing, and no one made a move to retrieve it. Everyone was staring at Katara, as if they needed to see her to keep living. "Remember freedom!" Katara shouted with every breath as they dragged her from the hall. "Remember strength! Remember your pride!"

The doors slammed shut behind her, only the third, huffing guard, remaining behind to watch the prisoners.

The hall was completely silent. No one moved. Zuko couldn't even breath. _Do we even remember how to fight... _If Zuko had forgotten, he had seen it in her eyes.

He was an exiled prince whom everyone hated, but he was still their prince. These people should have been his concern too. Before he hadn't seen it - he had just seen angry, selfish prisoners, struggling to survive. But, Katara had been... amazing. She had somehow found the pride buried deep within them, though she claimed not to understand it. Her words still burned through him. She had made their shameful battle honorable again. These people needed what Katara had, and it was something Zuko couldn't give them. It was something she'd given him.

A way to fight.

_Each time they strike you, hold back your cries... _he realized._ I have been fighting._

Chey blinked as Zuko stood up suddenly from the table, his chair scraping across the ground. He felt the eyes of many of the prisoners turn to him, the first to move. Chey glanced up at him as he stormed away from the table. "Where are you going, Prince Zuko?" the man called.

"To fight my own battle," Zuko replied, his voice echoing in the dead, metallic chamber. He turned back to Chey. "You coming? Or don't you have the strength of a fourteen year old girl?"

Chey blinked at him, then stood and followed him out of the mess hall, the doors clanging shut behind them.

"And quit the formalities," Zuko added. "You sound stupid when you say it."

* * *

Sokka clattered down the hall, finally wrenching the correct door open. He burst into Zuko's cell, winded. The prince looked up, as if he'd been expecting Sokka. "She did it again," the boy huffed. "I can't believe her! She's earned another _ten_ lashes! That's double last night! What are we gonna do?"

Zuko didn't even bat an eye. "Flip her tile," he said.

"What?"

"Flip. Her. Tile."

"Zuko... you can't! - _Ten lashes!!"_

He just stared at Sokka with his serious golden eyes.

"Why are you doing this?" the boy finally whispered.

"Because," Zuko replied, looking away, "I believe what she said." He looked back at Sokka and his eyes shimmered dangerously in the light. "I want to fight."


	12. Chapter 12:Lower Levels

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: why won't you go get me chilly cheese fries, trombe! TT...TT i want chilly fries! i'm hungry! (he's always soo mean! boo! and after i bought him mochi from the japanese market mitsuwa too...) why do you hate me!?_

**Trombe: I'm not really a fan of chilly cheese fries. Plus I hate driving.  
**

_artsyelric: haha, your sister got me chilly fries, and now i will eat them on your bed while i write. may you smell them all night and think about how mean you are to me XPP_

**Trombe:** **I'll just go and clean that up later. Won't really make me feel bad cause, you know, I don't have a conscience.**

_artsyelric: i hate you. which is good fuel for this story! (crying softly) what we put ourselves through to write in character!_

_but on a happier note: **100 reviews! **__you people ROCK, so thanks sooo much for reviewing. it means so much, and inspires us to update faster! congrats "What I Don't Like About You", and our love to those who love it! (assuming trombe can love, conscienceless, chilly cheese fry hating jerk that he is...)_

_but on to the story!_

**Trombe: P.S. Yes, Katara will eventually learn of Zuko's sacrifice. Don't think we forgot that little detail. Wait and see how this plays out.**

_artsyelric: hope you like it!_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 12: Lower Levels  
**

* * *

Katara paced her cell. _Why doesn't anyone come?_ she wondered. She had caused that whole commotion, but she had no idea how people had taken it. The thoughts had just poured from her, and all she could do was hope that they had reached at least some of the prisoners. But however her fellow captives had taken it, she _knew _she had pissed off the guards. _So why hasn't anyone come?_

The same was true of the night before. She had paced around the cell then too, for hours, until she finally grew so tired that not even fear of the punishers could keep her awake. But they never came. _Is this how they mean to torture me? Make me wait and think about it? Or are they ignoring punishing me because they don't know how to handle a waterbender? _Immediately she had an image of them locking her away, cuffed and chained, with no water, unable to reach Sokka, with nothing to do but wait for Azula.

A shiver ran up her spine. Suddenly her bare little cell seemed like a paradise.

She'd been aware of the consequences when she spoke out like that, and she'd been willing to face them. She believed in what she'd told those people, and the guards could do what they wanted to her - she wouldn't abandon people who needed her. If she could help these people, she would take all the lashes, all the imprisonment this place could muster, and she would take it with the pride she was finally beginning to understand.

So where were they?

Suddenly, the door unbolted and Katara tensed as she saw it begin to slide outward. If she had thought she would be glad when they came because at least the wait would be over, she was wrong. Brave or not, she felt her heartbeat raise and her body shiver. But she was Katara, so scared or not, she had no intention of just rolling over to die. She would take her punishment, but she would not go easily!

As the door opened and the guard stepped in, Katara took a defensive stance and struck out at him. As her well aimed kick headed straight for the armored man's temple, the guard cried out stupidly and ducked. "Katara!" Sokka's whiny voice protested. "Stop doing that!"

Katara felt as if her heart had begun to beat again. She collapsed to the ground, her whole body shaking. "Sokka," she breathed. "I thought you were-"

"A punisher?" he surmised.

She looked up at him. "Then you know?" she asked.

"Katara, everybody knows!" her brother exaggerated. "The whole prison's talking about it!"

"Really?"

"Well don't sound so excited," her brother humphed. "It is most certainly _not _a good thing that you're running around making a mess for yourself. What do you expect to do, Katara? Do you really think you can save these people?"

"I can try," she shot back, standing. "Besides, it's them who need to save themselves. They just need someone to remind them, to believe in them and give them the chance."

"This isn't like that prison we found Haru in, Katara," Sokka shook his head. "These people are much different. This place is much crueler and twice as dangerous. Besides, we're here for Dad, not the entire prison! Have you forgotten? There's more at stake here than just your freedom. There's mine, Suki's, and Zuko's too!"

"Zuko," she scoffed at the name, turning her head angrily.

But Sokka's eyes lowered. "Katara, there's something I need to show you."

"If it's about Zuko, I don't want to hear it-"

"It's about this prison," he informed her. "There are things about it you still don't understand."

"But what if the punishers-"

"They're not coming," he cut her off again. "I mixed up your tile on the punishment board so that they won't know to punish you. The prison guards and punishers don't talk, so they'll probably never know, unless you're stupid."

Katara's eyes shown. "Sokka, you're a genius! Thank you!" she added, throwing her arms around his neck.

"It was Zuko's idea," he replied dryly.

"Oh, well... I guess it's still a good one then." She smiled at her brother. "Thanks for always looking out for me, bro."

"You're welcome. Now, are you going to trust me enough to come?"

Katara nodded, and her brother slammed his visor back down before escorting her out of the cell.

The two made their way through the metal open area where they had roll call, and down the hall to where they left the metal structure. The hall eventually opened to the stone area, the wall she and Zuko had fallen from to her left, the steps she climbed every morning before her. As Katara stepped off the concrete walkway and made her way down the steps to the area where they had morning exercises, she began to wonder where exactly her brother was taking her. They crossed the open area and started down into a stone hall she'd never been in. "Sokka, where are we going?"

"The lower levels," he replied, as he moved aside to let her pass out the end of the stone hall. "This is the other side of the Boiling Rock."

Katara stepped past her brother and up to the rail. Bellow her were over a hundred cell doors, packed even closer together than hers. But unlike the upper holding area, the night here was far from still. Guards, and even a few prisoners, moved along the platforms below her. Behind some cell doors she could hear people crying, and behind others, screaming. Across for her and bellow three floors, she saw barred cells. In many prisoners rattled the bars, and in others the occupants were chained, hand and foot, unable to move. Katara was reminded of what the Warden had threatened to do to her if she bended water at all. She could almost feel the chains around her neck already.

But it wasn't just the set up that was worse. Her eyes began to follow the moving people, and she saw much then that she wondered if she could ever forget. Three guards at the end of the left platform were beating up a forth man, a prisoner already covered in bruises. The man covered his head weakly, but the guards were unrelenting, apparently hurting him for nothing more than their own entertainment. On the other side, to Katara's right, six or seven guards surrounded two desperate prisoners who were locked in a fist fight. Both were bloody, and by the brutal way they fought, Katara could tell it was to the death. The guards jeered at them and pushed them towards one another harshly. Jerking her eyes away from the scene, she found only more terror as she saw another guard on the bottom level rip a screaming woman's shirt off, and push her roughly into a dark cell. Katara could hear her crying as the guard followed, slamming the door behind them.

But the prisoners themselves were no better. In one of the barred cells Katara could see through she noticed a heated fight going on. The occupants of the cell were throwing themselves at each other, and no guard even made a move to stop it. Two passing guards even stopped and began to wave their arms, as if placing bets on the men. In the cell three down from theirs, a woman struggled weakly as a bigger prison man forced his lips over hers, wrestling her to the floor. The two other men in his cell were cat calling as they watched, waiting their turns.

Nearly everywhere she looked, the prisoners and guards were ravaging each other. Screams were everywhere, and Katara's head was filled with it. The sent of blood, sweat and filth was overwhelming, and the horrors continued to swim in her eyes until she sunk to the ground, her knees giving out. The images sank into her mind, and terror, and anger, filled her. The air felt thick, and she struggled to breathe.

Suddenly, Sokka's arms were there, slipping gently around her, and he stepped between her and the rail, blocking her view. Grabbing her by the shoulders, he lifted her up, and wrapped his arms protectively around her, holding her face against his shoulder. The hard leather of his guard uniform rubbed against her face, but she didn't care. She wanted him to hold her even tighter, to somehow make all of this go away.

Eventually, when her shaking stopped, he let her go, stepping back and turning her gently around, guiding her back up the hall they'd come from with a hand around her shoulders.

They had left the hall to the lower cells, and climbed the stairs out of the stone open area before Katara found her voice. "Is it always like that?" she asked, and Sokka glanced behind him before shrugging with one shoulder.

"More or less," he answered. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to have to show you, but-"

She shook her head. "I needed to know." She rubbed her eyes, clearing tears away.

Her brother hesitated, then spoke. "The people here aren't all... good, like captured earthbenders or refugees or something. Not everyone is as noble as you might think they are. Some of the people here..."

"Are scum?" Katara finished. "Will betray me? It is the Fire Nation, Sokka. That's to be expected," she added, glancing angrily away.

"Thats to be expected of ALL nations, Katara, or didn't you hear your own speech? Things aren't as simple as they were when we were at the South Pole, little sister," Sokka preached. "And that's the other reason I wanted to bring you here." Sokka turned his sister's face back to his own. "By telling the Warden you were a prisoner of value to Azula, Zuko saved you from... that."

Katara's lip quivered. "Really, Sokka?" she whispered. "I want to believe you, but... it's so hard for me to trust him." Sokka waited as she struggled to find the right words. "I feel like... there's always something he's not telling us, and then when he is honest... when I finally think I understand him - that I could care about him - he... hurts me. I don't know why, but being near him always hurts. And, I'm... afraid."

"Of what?" Sokka asked, puzzled to hear Katara admit something like that about the Fire Prince. "He didn't do anything wrong... well not technically, but that's beside it. So you do understand why he said those things, right? He wasn't trying to scare you, he wanted to save you..."

Sokka trailed off as his sister shook her head. "It isn't that."

"Then what?"

"I just... don't... I don't understand him," she finished lamely. "I never know when he's being serious, and when he's just..." She shrugged. "I can't tell if what he says means anything to him, if he actually cares about us at all."

Sokka looked at the girl, and for once didn't see the face of the strong waterbending master but the face of his scared, confused little sister. "Look... I... I think I understand what you mean. Just because we share the same goals now doesn't necessarily mean we're friends in all this. It just means we happen to be on the same side, for now. So... Is that what worries you? That you don't know if you can trust him? As a friend?"

She blinked at her brother. "Actually," she marveled, "I think that's right."

Sokka thumbed his nose haughtily. "Yeah, that's right," he grinned. "Who's the man?"

Katara bumped him playfully with her hips. But then she smiled. "You are, you goof ball."

Sokka grinned back at his sister with that stupid look. "You know," he thought out loud, "I do think that Zuko cares."

"Why would you say that?"

"Well," the boy pointed out. "He saved you from that place, didn't he?"

Katara pursed her lips as the words sunk in. She realized Sokka was right; Zuko had risked her hating him again in order to save her, if what he'd told Sokka was true. Plus, he'd really been looking out for Sokka while they were here. And he had shielded her from that arrow, and covered her from the fall. Then when they were in the cell, he... Katara felt her cheeks flush at the memory.

Lost in her thoughts as she was, and still trying to shake off the blush, she didn't notice Sokka stop in the hall and walked into him. "Sokka, what..." She glanced around to find the hallway unfamiliar. "Where are we?"

Sokka pulled a key from his belt and slid open a door on the side of the wall. Katara frowned as freezing air poured out. Then her brother smiled most mischievously. "You look a little flushed, sister," he said.

Katara blushed more, suddenly wondering if her brother knew what she was thinking. But before she could respond, Sokka grabbed her arm. "What are you-"

He pushed her backward into the cooler and slammed the door. "Sorry, sis," he said. "I'll be right back, okay? Just wait here for me, and cool off!" he added, waving good-bye.

"Sokka!" she hollared, banging on the door. "Sokka, let me out! SOKKA!"

But her cries went unanswered as her brother disappeared down the hall.

* * *

_Hold on a bit Zuko. Help's on its way._

Sokka carefully made his way towards his intended destination, his steps light and fast; he was being careful to not draw any suspicion. He waved casually to a passing guard before losing him around the corner. There he saw the door that he was looking for.

Quietly making his way towards it, Sokka glanced both ways just to make sure it was safe. Feeling confident that no one was going to come soon, Sokka unlatched the bolt to door Number 91.

What he saw before him cause his jaw to drop in shock, disbelief evident on his face.

It was worse then he had thought. Zuko lay there, sprawled across the ground, fresh blood dripping from his back as if a wild animal had mauled the Fire Prince. The whip had left terrible marks upon Zuko's pale skin. Sokka felt his own back ache just from looking at it.

He didn't even realize Zuko wasn't moving.

When he did, Sokka hastily knelt beside the fallen prince, shaking his shoulder vigorously.

"Zuko? ...Zuko!?" Sokka whispered, worried that the prince was not going to wake up.

"...Uncle?..." The Prince finally responded, his voice coarse and light; he did not sound alright to Sokka at all.

The boy tried for a crooked grin. "Nah, but I'm flattered you mistook me for the Dragon of the West." Even now, in such a grave situation, Sokka found the nerve to crack a joke. In a way, it was his defense mechanism from coping with such horrors. "Now c'mon, get up. Here," he offered as he slung the Prince's arm over his shoulder and struggled to stand up.

"S...Sokka..."

"Yep... that's my name. Rhymes with Okka, you know." Sokka grunted once more as he attempted to heave the prince up all by himself, not realizing how heavy Zuko was. The Fire Prince always moved so light and graceful during battles that his weight surprised the scrawny warrior. Sokka wheezed in effort as he dragged Zuko over his back, trying to both support his heavy frame and keep from hurting him more. "Oh boy," he gasped. "You could help a little..." But the groggy prince seemed unaware of his surroundings.

Sokka looked outside through the window in the door before shoving it with his other shoulder. The cell door swung open with ease and Sokka began dragging his heavily wounded companion out. There was no strength in Zuko's feet; they barely made contact with the ground, instead dragging across the metal floor as Sokka struggled to lug him up the hall.

"W... where... are... we..." Zuko was barely conscious, his head bobbing up and down with each heavy footstep.

"We're on our way to try and stop you from bleeding to death, that's where."

If Zuko hadn't looked like he was upon the brink of death, Sokka would have sworn he'd chuckled.

"...I didn't... know... you cared..."

"Yeah, well don't make it a habit," Sokka hastily replied as they made their way to the empty stairs.

"I... I didn't... scream..."

Sokka glanced at Zuko, clearly delirious from the whipping and loss of blood.

"...I ...I didn't... scream... Uncle... not...once..." he continued, breathily.

Sokka paused, letting the implications of that sink in, before starting climbing the stairs. "I know you didn't," the disguised Water tribe boy assured the prince.

Any reason Sokka had before to doubt Zuko vanished in that single moment. The scared teenager had suffered enough without his own allies questioning him, and as long as they were in this prison, Sokka vowed to be his friend. Whatever it took.

Just as Sokka managed to struggled up the last stair, he heard footsteps approaching. Panic struck him like lightning. There was no way he could talk his way out of this one. What was he going to say? He was taking a prisoner out on a midnight stroll? An _unconscious _prisoner no less?

Spotting a storage room to his left, Sokka thanked his lucky stars as he opened the door and shoved Zuko in without a second thought. Zuko groaned painfully as he fell against the wall. "Sorry," Sokka mouthed before closing the door shut.

The guard came around the corner whistling a happy tune. Sokka played it safe as he leaned against the wall, looking nonchalantly bored.

"Evening." The guard nodded to him as he continued to walk.

"How's it going?" Sokka said coolly.

It was just a small exchange of words, one that didn't really say much, but it was enough. The guard quickly walked away, not once glancing behind him.

The Water Tribe warrior wiped the cold sweat from his face in relief. He opened the door quietly and pulled Zuko out.

"...Ow..." the Prince muttered.

"Again, sorry." Sokka nervously smiled as he pulled Zuko back over his shoulder.

Finally the familiar hallways of the cooler section came into sight, which made Sokka drag Zuko all the more quickly. He spotted the door he wanted and stopped in front of it. He shifted Zuko and opened the latch to reveal a livid Katara, slightly shivering from the cold.

Before she could talk, Sokka pushed Zuko through the door, preventing his sister from slipping out.

"Sokka why did you-" Katara stopped, gasping in mid sentence at what she saw. "...Zuko?"

"Can't talk. No time. Here..." He pulled Zuko around and dropped the Fire Prince over his waterbender sister's shoulders. Katara stopped trying to slip out past him as she struggled under the injured man's weight. "Do something for him," Sokka stated, looking his sister in the eye.

"Wait, wha-" Before Katara could finish her confused statement Sokka closed the hatch on her, leaving both of them inside.

* * *

Katara glared angrily at the cell door, her feet sliding on the ice as the barely conscious man clung to her neck. "Sokka!" she shouted through the tiny air window. "Sokka, we don't both fit in here! And I can't heal someone in a terrible place like this!"

"It's the only place I could think of," her brother hissed back, obviously posted outside the door like a guard. "It has water, and no one can see you!"

"Sokka-"

"Katara, if you don't help him, he'll die."

"What's wrong with him any..." Her voice cut off as her eyes fell across his bloody back. "What happened?"

"The punishers," Sokka replied.

"Why didn't you change his number like you did mine?" Katara demanded. "Sokka?" But the boy didn't answer.

"Please, Katara?" he asked. "We don't have much time."

Sighing, she looked at the prince again. His lips moved voicelessly, and his pale skin was sweaty. She touched his forehead with her cheek (her hands preoccupied with holding him up). He was too hot, even in the frozen cell. Layers of bruises littered the unburned side of his face from the many times he'd been smacked in the last few days, swelling so that his left eye was almost as narrow as his right. Even his ribs had bruises, probably from either the fall, the prisoners picking on him, or the guard that kicked him for speaking out against Chi Tzang's punishment. But his back and side were the worst.

The arrow wound had never been healed properly, and from the look of it, it had been getting torn open. She could see it was beginning to show signs of infection as well, and it still leaked blood from both front and back. The rest of his back was covered in whip marks. Katara counted what she thought was fifteen. Five had bruises forming around them, dark and bloody, and ten looked more recent, still welts rising angrily off his skin. Blood leaked from most of them, a wet coating across his whole back. Not even the chill of the cooler seemed to dim their violent stream.

Zuko stirred slightly as she removed her cheek from his face, missing it's warmth. "...Mai?" he whispered, his voice barely audible.

Katara snorted and decided to reverse their rolls. "Hardly," she smiled, as the memory of the two of them in the cell came flashing back. She frowned slightly, remembering that day. Sokka had said Zuko meant no harm back then. She wanted that to be true so much; she wanted to believe her older brother. Maybe it was time for her to take the first step. She was a healer, after all. How could she not help? "Sokka," she called softly. "Zuko's going to need more than just my waterbending." Her brother turned slightly, looking questioningly into the cooler, as if afraid she was still refusing. "Can you find some bandages?"

A big smile covered the part of his face she could see through the bars and visor as he nodded. "I'll be back. Stay quiet!" he added, before striding off purposefully.

Katara turned back to her patient. This was definitely not the right place to be treating the injured. Zuko's skin was already getting chill, and there was no way he could lay down in this place - the two of them could both barely fit standing. She considered it for a bit, and finally realized that there was no way she could support his heavy form without her arms, and no way she could heal with him hanging on her. He would have to stand on his own.

As it was, his arms were draped over her shoulders, on either side of her head, and his head dangled to his right, resting slightly on her shoulder. He was slumped a bit to that side, and her left hand on his massive forearm was all that held him up. Struggling to free her right hand instead, she moved it to the only uninjured part of his body she could find, the scarred side of his face. She lifted his heavy head and patted him gently. "Zuko," she called, mindful of being quiet. "Zuko, can you hear me?"

He groaned. His arm pressed weakly against her back, and she felt his hand close, his fist gripping her hair gently. "Mom?" he wheezed.

"Not that uncommon a misconception, actually," Katara replied, hefting him towards his feet. "Though I have no idea what _your _mother specifically looked like... Come on, stand up. I need you to stand, Zuko."

"... I'm sorry..." his voice cracked as he spoke, and he sounded suddenly much younger. "...I'm... so sorry..." His hands tightened on her back, gripping her hair harder. Katara could feel him shaking, and was afraid the cold was setting in, or the pain. "...I... let... you down... Mom... I... forgot who... I was..."

If this hadn't been Zuko, Katara's heart might have broken. This was a side of boys people weren't supposed to see. Weak, hurt, and lonely. A side reserved only for their mother, or maybe the woman they learned to love. It definitely wasn't a side Zuko was supposed to have. Zuko, the hot blooded prince. Zuko, the betrayer. But he did. And it wasn't his mother or his girlfriend who was seeing it. They weren't there; he was alone. The only person there to see it... was Katara.

The healing art of the greatest waterbending masters employed a special kind of emotion. To be done well, you had to care about the person you were healing. Katara had learned this up at the North Pole in the day she had spent in the women's healing class. You could study the art of healing with waterbending for decades, and it would make you a better healer, to be sure. But the best way to apply it effectively was to care for the person you were tending, to want them to get well. She knew for a fact that had been true with Aang.

For the first time, she started to think she could heal Zuko.

She realized she was rubbing the back of his head in a mothering manner, and stopped herself. Instead, she gripped his left forearm harder, and slipped her right hand down beneath his chest, struggling to push him up. "Zuko, please," she called. "You have to stand."

The prince's eyes slid into focus. He still didn't seem to know where he was or what was happening, but she saw her request register in his mind. He let go of her hair, and wrapped his big hand around her shoulder, struggling to get his feet beneath him. Then, with a mighty effort, he rocked to his feet.

...And started tipping backwards.

Katara muffled her surprise as she reached an arm around him at the same time he took a stumbling step back to catch himself. As his weight shifted backwards into her arm, he cried out harshly. She felt blood from the wounds seep over her hand.

Guilt was just starting to set in, when he shook his head. Apparently the sharp pain had woken him slightly. His swollen eyes squinted as he tried to focus on her. "...Katara?"

"Finally," she replied, glad he was at least aware enough to recognize her now, though barely.

"...What... where..." He shivered. "...Why is it... cold..."

"Zuko, I'm going to let go of you," she warned him. "You're really hurt-" he grunted a half-laugh, "-and I'm going to try and heal you."

Any sign of mirth faded from his features immediately. "...Why?" he asked, swaying slightly in her grasp.

"Because... I forgive you," she said suddenly. "For trying to save me from those lower cells."

She didn't know if he could still hear her or not, or if he understood what she was saying. He just stood for a minute, tipping dangerously, his eyes twitching as if unused to the dark. She was just about to give up and try something else, when he moved. He reached his arms out, over her head, and leaned against the wall of cooler. His big hand planted firmly in the ice, and she heard it hiss as he touched it. As he leaned, his chest and face pressed closer to hers, and she leaned back. His jaw set, and he met her eyes, his still foggy, but finally aware. "How do we... do this?" he grunted, holding in his pain.

"There's ice from the walls and moisture from the air in here," Katara gestured. "I could use them to try and heal you with waterbending."

Zuko didn't reply right away, So Katara had thought her words hadn't reached him.

"Will it... hurt?" he finally asked.

She swallowed, watching his lips move. "It might," she admitted, remembering Aang's healing sessions. "I'll... be as gentle as I can."

He nodded, and she ducked under him, her face burning as if she were the one with the fever. The chill of the cooler did nothing to stop the heat rushing to her cheeks.

She squeezed around him until she could get a clear shot at his back. "I'm starting," she said, her hands swirling in a slow circular pattern, pulling water from the icy walls of the cooler to coat them. They began to glow, and she reached out cautiously, touching the first bleeding gash. Zuko flinched. "Does that hurt?" she asked.

"Cold," he gasped.

"Sorry."

He exhaled a burst of fire from his mouth, and then coughed roughly. She reached around him before she realized what she was doing, rubbing his chest and holding him still. When he stilled, she felt the heat in her face again, and pulled back quickly. "Sorry," she stuttered. "Ah... again."

He shook his head, declining any need for her apology. "...I... don't think I'm... up... for Breaths of Fire... just yet..." His tone was almost sarcastic despite his pain.

"You okay?" she checked.

"Yeah... You can... start again..."

She nodded, and this time when she touched him, he stayed still, though his muscled tightened visibly as she ran the healing water over the red welts. Where she touched, the blood stopped, and new scabs began to form. The bumps faded, and the bruises receded almost completely. She worked gently and methodically, trying to put as much care into her actions as she could, and trying to be gentle as well.

As she finished his shoulders and began to move down his back, she felt him relax beneath her fingers. Slowly, his pain was disappearing. "So," she wondered as she moved farther down his spine. "What did you do to get all these? I mean, I've been causing riots every night, and they haven't touched me. Though I hear Sokka had something to do with that... What I mean is, you must have done something pretty bad!" She laughed pathetically, hoping to lighten the heavy mood.

"Sokka... didn't tell you... then?" the Fire Prince asked, his voice still weak.

Katara shook her head, then remembered he couldn't see her. "No," she spoke instead. "He took me to see the lower cells though." Her voice got quiet as the images flooded back to her. "It was..."

"I know," Zuko's voice cut hers off. "Don't relive it." His command so strong and harsh made her obey it, but then his head sunk below his shoulders. "I never wanted you to see..."

"It's okay," she assured him. "I understand now why you said what did... about Azula." He glanced back at her through his bruised eye. "I can't say I trust you completely yet... but I forgive you. For that. And I'm sorry for doubting you..." She paused, "I'm wiling to try. I can't stand fighting with you anymore," she admitted heavily.

He stared back at the icy wall, silent. Then his voice came, disbelieving. "Really?"

She swallowed. "Yeah." She started moving her hands across his back again, pulling the hurt from his muscles. "So how'd you get these?" she repeated casually.

"I..." He shifted nervously against the wall. "It's nothing... really..."

"What does that mean?" She realized some of the heat was back in her voice - he was doing it again!

"It... I..." He looked back at her, and his eyes reflected the only light from the tiny window, glowing gold. "I'm sorry. I can't say."

He always did this! Just when she thought she could trust him, he did something. He always hid something, and somehow, it scared her. Her lip quivered, but she had just promised to try. "Oh," she answered, dumbly, turning back to her work.

He kept watching her. "Where does that leave us?" His voice was getting stronger again, deeper.

"I... I don't know..." she whispered.

She kept working her fingers over his wounds, though she knew he was still watching her, those shinning eyes following her every motion. But eventually, he looked away again, and she continued to soothe his wounds. As she ran her hands over the biggest cut, the one running from the edge of his shoulder to the base of his spine and across his back, he moaned slightly. The sound stirred something deep with Katara, and she felt her heart pump faster. _This is exactly why he scares me, _she realized. _What I don't understand..._

Eventually, she'd done all she could on his back. The wounds were all closed, though some of them were still scabs, and the bruising was almost completely gone, only hints of the deepest remaining. She wiped sweat from her forehead with her wrist. "Well, that's a start," she sighed. "Better?"

He cautiously pushed himself off the wall, leaving one hand against it for support. He stood straight cautiously, moving slightly to see if he could. "Loads," he breathed. "Thank you, Katara."

She crossed her arms. "Don't thank me yet. We've still got a lot of work to do, and healing that arrow wound might hurt a lot more, since it's infected."

"You didn't hurt me," Zuko denied stoically. "Everything you did felt..." Suddenly his face flushed and he didn't finish his sentence. At first she thought he was blushing of all things, but then he swayed a little, and raised a hand to his temple. "I'm sorry, I still don't feel... good..."

"Well, you lost a lot of blood," she informed him.

He took a moment before replying. "Continue."

She stepped cautiously up to him, noticing how much taller than her he was, and coated her hands with more water from the wall. As she ran them in circles across his chest, she remembered wrapping his bandage in the cell a few days ago. She found her eyes being drawn to the scars she had noticed then, and wondering how much the prince had suffered in his life to get all of them so young. As his chest rose as fell, and her hands skated gently across it, rubbing the pale skin and shrinking the bruises, she felt the same heady feeling she had before. Only this time, she wasn't drugged.

Shaking her head to clear it, she finished off the last rib and looked up at him. "Ready to do the arrow?" she asked.

He leaned his shoulders back against the icy wall with a wince for the cold, and nodded.

She placed one shimmering hand in front of the wound, and one where it appeared out his back. Then she began to circle them, pushing and pulling with the flow of the water and his body, and he sucked air through his teeth as the water began to move through the wound.

"I told you it would hurt," she voiced, keeping the flow steady, but not increasing. "Are you still okay?"

He shook his head, apparently not trusting his voice.

She began moving the water a little stronger, focusing on collecting all the infection first, and cycling it out. When she was done washing the wound, she began drawing out the tension and clotting that a wound created inside the body. This was the same thing she had done with Aang, and she knew it had been worse for him, since his injury was greater. But he had lived, so she hoped Zuko would be alright in his weakened state. She glanced up at Zuko as she began to pull at the wound, and saw that his jaw was squeezed shut like his eyes, and he was breathing heavily through his nose as he pressed against the cold wall. "Keep breathing," she instructed. "Tell me if you can't take it any more."

"I'm... okay," he managed.

"Good. Then tell me where it hurts most," she directed instead.

He breathed a few more times before wincing as her water passed through him. "There," he said. "Just a little more to your left -ah! There!"

His chest spasmed as she worked the water into the painful spot of the wound, and his breathing hiccuped sporadically. "Breathe," she reminded him, working it deeper, and the Prince gasped.

Little moans began escaping him with each push and pull of her water, but she continued until she felt she had all the infection and pain gathered. His hand curled into a fist against the wall. As she had done with Aang, she prepared to remove all that built up tension from his body, along with her water. Stiffening her hands, she drew her water away from him, sucking all the hurtful impurities with it. Zuko's body tensed as she did so, and his mouth opened in a silent scream.

Katara tossed the ruined water away and pulled more from the wall in the same motion, immediately running her fingers back along his side, soothing, and healing. Zuko shuddered as the skin began to knit back together, and he slid down the wall. His feet slipped, and Katara made a grab at him, her healing abandoned. "Zuko!" she worried, as she caught him.

"Sorry," he gasped, slumping against her.

Her legs gave out and they dropped to the icy floor, a tangles of arms and legs. Katara squealed as he pinned her to the ground in the fall, and she struggled to breath. She pushed against his chest, feeling totally crushed beneath him, and her legs slipped uselessly on the ice. "Zuko," she hissed. "Zuko, get off!" Her voice was more frightened than she meant it to be - which most certainly had nothing to do with the vast amount of warm, bare flesh pressing against her.

She felt him stir, recognizing the desperateness in her voice, and he somehow managed to flip himself. Katara sucked in air as she turned to him. He was shivering violently now, his back pressed against the ice she was so familiar with, his legs crunched up so that he fit in the small cooler. "Are we... done?" he panted.

"I think I covered everything, so yes," she assessed, touching his forehead with her hand this time. "But you still have a fever... I don't know if I can heal that."

"I just... want... out of this... cooler." He had gone back to being unable to complete a sentence in one breath, and Katara stroked his bangs out of his face, worried.

"Sokka's not back yet," she replied. "As soon as he is, we'll get you outside where it's warm."

Zuko bobbed his head in a bracing way.

"While we're here, I'll do what I can to close that," she offered, waving towards the arrow wound, "though it will probably take a few more sessions. And I can heal your wrists and the bruises on your face so you can see well again."

"That'd be... good..." he wheezed sarcastically.

She hid a smile as she began to run her fingers over the arrow wound one last time, kneeling beside him so she could lean over him to reach the wound properly. As the flesh knitted itself back together, Zuko seemed to calm a bit, his pain ebbing, but he was shivering more violently now. "This place sucks," he muttered as she moved on the the manacle cuts on his wrists.

Katara almost laughed as she rubbed his hands. "What, the cooler, or the Boiling Rock?"

"The whole... stupid place..." Zuko responded.

"Well," she amended, "at least you're not alone anymore."

He opened an eye curiously. "We're okay then?" he asked.

She paused, wanting to say yes, but remembering the fact that he still hadn't said where the lashes came from. It was always something with him... And she still hadn't forgiven him for Ba Sing Se...

"I see..." He closed the eye again.

"No, wait," she insisted, and it opened slowly. "I... As long as we're here, I'll try, Zuko. Truce for now?" she asked, holding out a hand where he could clearly see it.

"Well," he sighed. "Better than nothing." He took her hand in his own frozen one, and she felt he knew this was only a start, a temporary agreement. What he had done was still there, but for now they had to put it aside and deal with bigger issues. Neither of them wanted to die here. But Katara was sure she saw determination in his eyes, as if they were screaming _we'll start with that, and then..._ But he only said, "Truce," and wrapped his calloused fingers around her own small hand.

"Right then," she acknowledged formally. "Shall I heal that black... face?" she asked, noticing how much more than a black eye the bruises were.

He actually smiled. "Please."

Feeling as if something very strange, and (because it was Zuko) still somehow frightening, had just happened, Katara reached up and began rolling her fingers over his face. He flinched at the cold water slightly, then closed his eyes as the gentle fingers caressed his face. Eventually, the bruise lifted, only a faint shadow of what it had been, and her glowing hand drifted over to the left side of his face.

His eyes sprang open suddenly, and his hand wrapped around her wrist. She froze, inches from him. "I was just..."

"It's okay," he stopped her. "This scar... is a part of me now." He smiled again. He had done that more times tonight than she had ever seen him smile since she had first met him. Something was definitely different. "Besides," he added, "I've had enough healing for one night."

Before she could withdraw her hand, the cooler door slid open, and Sokka stood outside it, rolls of bandages pinned between his left arm and chest. Katara felt herself flush at how close she was to Zuko, leaning over him as he lay weakly, her face close to his, his hand still clamped softly around her wrist. She pulled back with a heady sound, and, for the fourth time that infernal night, felt her cheeks turning red.

Fortunately Sokka didn't seem to notice anything as he dropped the bandages onto the floor. "Got 'em," he declared.

"Took you long enough," Zuko complained.

"Hey, I worked hard to swipe these for you! Be grateful!" Zuko turned away. "Hold on, why's your face so red?" he asked the prince.

"Back off," Zuko growled as Sokka leaned towards him pushily.

"It is! Your face is really red!"

Katara felt her own turning, though she'd thought it impossible, even redder. _Zuko _was _blushing?_

"I have a _fever, _you moron," he insisted, shoving the nosy warrior away. "Of course my face is red."

"Well, if I'm done," Katara cut in, standing quickly, "then I'm going to get some rest." She turned away before her brother - or Zuko! - could see her glowing cheeks. "Zuko, you'll be hungry tomorrow so make sure to try and eat, though I don't blame you if you skip out. The food here is just another form of torture." She decided she would end the night with one piece of good advice for her unexpected patient.

"Don't get caught," Sokka put in as Katara stepped out of the cooler.

"Goodnight," Zuko called after her. "And... thank you."

She stopped, her back still to them, and swallowed. "Goodnight," she agreed in a soft voice, before walking away.


	13. Chapter 13:Sacrifice

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: finally! the climax of the torturing of zuko! you've all been waiting for it, and the poor boy has been too. but after this chapter he's on the up and up (for the most part). and i think those of you whining about katara's continued lack of faith in him will find this chapter fulfilling too - so stop complaining about her! XDD she's katara, what do you want?_

_ps: i'm so bored in LA since there's nothing to do this week or next! trombe, i mmiiiiiissssssss you!_

**Trombe: I hate waking up so early to work. I don't get to update as fast as I would like. And yes...this would be the last of Zuko's torment, I can assure you. Well...physical torment anyway**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 13: Sacrifice  
**

* * *

Even in the cramped darkness of his cell Zuko still felt the presence of the sun rising. As usual, he was already up to greet it. All throughout the night he fought fiercely against his fever, and in the end it broke out in time for him to get some much needed sleep. Having been well rested, Zuko was surprised to discover how much stronger he had felt then before.

Since he was up before the morning bell, he removed the bandages Sokka had helped him wrap the night before, and glanced at his back. He was surprised to find only faint scars, the kind that would eventually fade, maybe completely, with time. He was even more pleased to see none of the bruises remained on his body, gone as if they had never been, taking all the pain he'd grown accustomed to with them. The wound on his side was still sore when he stretched, but it didn't break open and bleed, and it was no longer oozing the way it had been the last day or two. As the waterbender had predicted, he was hungry, but otherwise, he felt a million times better.

What Katara had done was just amazing. He had never seen waterbending done as a healing art before, but it would be the last time he underestimated his opposite element. The power to heal like that was... incredible, especially to Zuko, who constantly struggled with an element that only burned constantly. While he knew, even more so since he had met the Masters, that firebending was more than just destruction, seeing bending at work in the way Katara had done was an experience Zuko was glad to have seen for himself - and not just because his wounds were gone, though that was a big plus.

He flexed the muscles in his forearms as he began to open and close his fists in a steady rhythm. With the speed of lightning, he threw a single fist forward in front of his chest, following the move by spinning his body, using the momentum to deliver a light backhand aimed at his imaginary opponent's head. His body was moving much better.

But then he swayed on his feet. Exerting himself that much still left the Fire Prince a bit dizzy, and he shook his head as if to knock away the blurriness in his eyes. Zuko sat down slowly. Katara had warned him that he'd be weak today, before she'd left the cooler, and he was not about to push his luck.

For the first time, thinking of her didn't make him frustrated or guilty. Instead, he was amused at the thought of the blue eyed waterbending girl.

She didn't hate him.

He didn't know why, but that single piece of good news, the only one he had received since coming here to the Boiling Rock, lifted his spirits more than the prison had depressed them. It was as if a heavy burden was taken up off his shoulders.

But still... strange soothing sensations lingered around his body. As if he could still feel her delicate fingers working over his wounds. It felt... very nice - although he was not about to admit it to her, or to anyone for that matter.

Zuko remembered how close they had been inside that cooler and it reminded him of the time they had spent together in that single cell. The higher powers above seem to just love cramping him in with her every chance they got. But each time they did, Zuko found himself strangely being drawn closer to the girl.

He wondered if Katara had ever thought of it that way. What would she say?

A small smirk came across his face, imagining the scowl that she would wear on her face as she crossed her arms over her breast. _Well that's just silly, _she would say. He wondered if people from the Water Tribes even believed in greater beings, let alone that they would take joy from meddling with humans.

Now that he had thought of it, he realized he barely knew Katara at all. Sure, he could tell what she was like; caring, motherly, spiteful, courageous, smart, independent, naive; yet all these things were just from his observations. No wonder she couldn't trust him before. She probably didn't even know him either. They were complete strangers to one another. Other than when they were imprisoned together, they never really even talked. If he was going to be her friend, Zuko knew he had to take some drastic measures.

He promised himself he would try to get to know the feisty waterbender once this whole ordeal was over, even if it was just a little bit. Maybe then the truce they'd struck wouldn't have to be just temporary.

The morning bell sounded outside his cell, and his door sprang open unaided.

Ready for the day, Zuko tried to put thoughts of Katara aside. He moved through his morning activities without seeing her. But from the looks of things he wasn't the only one being affected by the Southern Water Tribe girl. All throughout chores he heard the buzzing and whispering of slight words, often indicating rebellion, change, and possibly... hope.

Zuko saw none of the hostilities between Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom from before. On the contrary, it actually looked like they were tolerating each other's presence. While it was still clear that the Fire Nation prisoners kept to their kind and the Earth people theirs, there was no shouting, no insults, no shoves, no pushes, and no malice in the air.

"Would you look at that?" Chey whistled as he mopped the floor adjacent to the Fire Prince. "Old man Fung there's not even doing his daily ritual of spitting on a Earth Kingdom prisoner."

"Thats just disgusting," Zuko humored the former Fire Nation soldier.

"Well, he isn't," Chey pointed out. "That's amazing... That was just one night. That waterbending girl of yours sure is persuasive."

"For the last time she _isn't_ my girl, Chey," Zuko sighed, not even bothering to look up at the man.

"Meant no offense your high- I mean Zuko, " Chey corrected himself. "I was just saying that 'cause the two of you arrived together. Though I don't know why it makes you mad. I mean what's not to like? She's pretty cute, a master waterbender, travels with the avatar-" the man continued to ramble on.

"Chey..."

"Yes?"

"Shut up."

Chey smiled as he continued to mope the floor aimlessly. "Shutting up now."

But the peaceful setting among the prisoners was not for everyone. Just as the group on mop duty were finishing up their floor, a big fire nation prisoner sauntered into the area, two of his friends at his back. The man quirked an eyebrow at the fellow Chey had labeled Fung. "What are you doing up here with these lowlifes, old man?" he asked, glaring at the earth nation soldiers around them.

"Hey," one of the younger Fire Nation men protested. "Back off, Da. We're just moping."

The man called Da frowned, and suddenly he kicked the objecting man's bucket over. "No one was talking to you, traitor," he threatened, grabbing the smaller man's collar.

Zuko was near enough to step in, and laid a hand calmly on Da's arm, glad to see he wasn't much smaller than the angry firebender. "I don't see what the problem is," he said civilly. "So why don't you put him down."

Da glanced angrily at the prince, then snorted and released his hold on the frightened boy, tossing him aside neglectfully. The man sneered. "Well, Gouliang," he taunted, glancing snidely back at Zuko. "I guess we can all see where your loyalties lie now."

"That is quiet enough," a deep voice barked, and Zuko saw the earthbender Katara had pointed at during her speech step up. "If you want to cause trouble so much, Da, go cause it elsewhere. We have chores to finish here."

"What," Da barked, "you think just because one foreign, twelve year old girl gets up in front of you and waves her ideals, you can change things here? This is the Boiling Rock!"

"Hey," Zuko snapped, "she's fourteen. And she's obviously gut more guts than you already."

"Why you little-"

"Enough!" the earthbender insisted, stepping between Zuko and Da forcefully, two of the earth soldiers around them moving up beside him. "Keep that up and the guards will come," the man added. "And we all know how much you love trips to the cooler, Da."

The man's eyes narrowed, but he obviously didn't want to mess with the guards, or the older earthbender for the matter. So he gestured at his friends, and they left without another word.

"You really shouldn't pick fights, Prince Zuko," the older man advised, turning to him. "Your reputation can't take anymore. You're already far from loved in this prison."

"I'm not surprised," Zuko grumbled, his attention going to the traitor Fire Nation prisoner Da had threated. "You all right?"

"Fine," the man called Gouliang grumped. "Better without your help," he added, shouldering Zuko away and striding down the hall.

Chey glanced at Zuko and shrugged. But after a moment, the Prince nodded after the man's retreating back, and Chey took the hint and followed his fellow traitor down the prison hall. Zuko looked back at the earthbender. "You didn't have to help him," Zuko pointed out.

"Neither did you," the man replied, holding out a hand. "I'm Wei."

Zuko was taken back by the camaraderie in that offer. But he only hesitated a moment before taking it. "Zuko," he courteously answered.

"I know." His voice was oddly cold for someone offering his hand in friendship. "I'm here because your sister and her friends defeated me and my men at Ba Sing Se." Zuko tensed. He always wondered what exactly people expected him to say when they revealed stuff like that. But then the man smiled. "I am glad to know Katara was right. Not all Fire Nation people are heartless."

"Azula is," Zuko admitted, relieved Wei didn't blame him. "Trust me."

"These are my men," Wei introduced. "Or what's left of them. Ping and Yingjie." The men nodded in turn, and Zuko bowed back.

"So... you know Katara?" he asked.

"Only since we got here," Wei answered casually. "We met briefly before, but we really got to know Suki and Katara only after we got here. She's quite the inspirational one though, isn't she?"

"You could say that again," Zuko agreed.

"She's got this whole prison buzzing like it never has since I arrived," Wei admitted. "Why, even my old bones are stirring. Have you seen her yet this morning?" Zuko shook his head negatively. "Well, I'm going to look in on her," Wei informed him. "Morning chores are almost done, and I want to make sure she's alright before we're stuffed back in our cells."

"Alright?" Zuko inquired, frowning. _She should be fine, shoudn't she?  
_

"With all her ruckus, the guards are extra antsy," Wei explained. "They're likely to make an example out of someone sooner or later, and she probably got some sort of punishment for last night already. I wouldn't want them hurting her. I've grown rather fond of the girl," he admitted with a grin.

Zuko thought about telling him Katara was fine, but then remembered that he'd already admitted to not seeing her yet that morning. He realized it would be suspicious if he knew something like that without seeing her, so instead he nodded farewell to Wei. "Good luck finding her," he offered as the man left.

_Well, _Zuko thought, as he scrubbed up the water Da had spilled, _at least there's a few more people who don't hate me. This day is going suspiciously well..._

* * *

Katara settled back into her cell, proud of herself. That morning she'd gotten some heated glares from a few of the prisoners who apparently hadn't liked her speech, but the majority of them seemed to have heard her. Where she went, prisoners actually smiled, and a few even saluted her, each in their own way. Suki had even grumbled that it was like being with a celebrity, the way people moved to help each other when she appeared, as if trying to prove to her they still had not lost themselves entirely.

Every time a prisoner walked taller as she passed, or acted warmly towards a prisoner of a different nation, Katara felt her pride swelling. Not because she thought a lot of herself, but because she was proud of the people. She felt more moved by them than they seemed to be by her. _I actually made a difference! _she realized, as she remembered her morning, and how many people had reached inside themselves to rise to her challenge. _There's good there; in all of them._

The trip to the lower levels the night before was still heavy on her mind, but somehow, instead of making the whole prison seem darker, the way she thought Sokka had intended, it made the prisoners around her seem admirable. They way they acted today, their efforts, all of it seemed so much more noble after seeing the lower levels. The people here were definitely better.

And so was Zuko. She still didn't like being around him for the strange way he made her feel and the secrets he continued to hide from her, but she had to admit, knowing that he hadn't turned her over to Azula heartlessly made her opinion of him change slightly. Not a lot, but enough. Slowly, he was beginning to grow on her. _I wonder why he wouldn't say where he got those lashes..._

Steps pattered outside Katara's cell and she sprang off her bed as the door opened. The guard flinched as he stepped into the room, throwing his hands up in front of his face and making a stupid sound. "Sokka?" she asked. "...What are you doing?"

He glanced around cautiously before realizing she wasn't hitting him. Then he straightened over-dramatically. "Right," he surmised. "Just making sure you didn't attack me again... but on to the reason I'm here." He pressed his face to the tiny window in her cell door suspiciously. "There are more guards walking around here during the day, so I'm going to make this quick." His eyes peered dangerously through the bars like a spy.

"Make what quick?" Katara asked, ignoring her brother's antics.

He turned back to her. "Katara, don't cause any more trouble tonight, okay?"

"What?" she demanded. "But I've done so much good! Why would you say that?"

"Because," he insisted. "I think they're getting suspicious about me changing your number. Just... try not to draw attention to yourself for at least _one _night, okay? For me?"

She sighed. "Okay, okay," she replied. "I'll try my best."

"Good," he closed the discussion, pulling his helmet back on. But then his face turned suspicious as he realized she'd said _try._ "I mean it, Katara, don't do anything you can't handle the punishment to. Because I don't think I can get you out of it this time!"

"I get it, Sokka," she agreed, taking his hand. "I'll be good."

"Thank you," he huffed, reaching for the door.

"Sokka?"

"What?" he asked, stopping.

"How'd Zuko get those lashes?"

Sokka was quiet. "Please, Katara," he finally spoke, "don't ask me that. He doesn't want you to know, and... I respect that. I'm sorry."

"I just don't see why he always has to keep things from me," she sighed, exhaling a big breath. "It's not that I don't _want _to trust him, but how can I? Even you're keeping his secrets from me now... It feels..." She stopped, unable to think of a word, and her sentence trickled into nothing.

Sokka turned back to face her. "Katara, I promise you, when the time is right, I'll tell you. Until then, it doesn't really effect you that much. It's not like he's doing anything wrong, or that could hurt us in any way, I promise. In fact, he's really trying to help."

"Then why doesn't he just say so?"

Sokka smiled. "Pride."

"That again."

"Well, a man's gotta have it! It's on our list of essential masculine attributes." Sokka puffed out his chest as he ticked them off on his fingers. "Pride, muscles, some scars-"

"Then it seems Zuko's doing just fine," she snipped at her ridiculous brother.

Sokka rubbed his chin as he considered that. "I suppose," he admitted. "But I think I'd prefer some... smaller scars myself, hmm?"

Katara finally snorted a laugh. "Get out, you lug head," she sighed, pushing him through the door, "before you draw any more suspicion to me."

"Yeah, it was great to see you too, little sis," he mocked sarcastically as she shoved him out.

After the door closed, Katara slumped onto her cot for some much needed rest. Healing took a lot out of her too, and she hadn't slept well last night, between thoughts of Zuko and the lower levels (she was still pondering which one was more upsetting...). But exhaustion took over this time, as she knew it would, and she drifted off.

When she woke up to the bell tolling, she realized she was famished. She was so hungry, she actually wanted the viral excuse for meat they fed the prisoners here. She hoped roll call went quickly so that she could eat, and she hurried to her number, smiling briefly at the prisoners who greeted her.

She noticed Chi Tzang lined up to her left, and that he was looking much better since his lashings. His friend, on the other hand, was giving both him and Katara frustrated looks, and the smaller boy still moved carefully. Her eyes sought out Zuko, and she saw him moving towards his number. He looked much better, and moved with ease, though he still seemed a little paler than normal, and the traces of the bruises on his face still remained, mere shadows on his skin, making him look dark beneath his bangs.

Suddenly he saw her, and their eyes met, gold slicing into the flowing blue. Then he smiled.

Katara forced herself to breath. He was smiling. Again. Part of her wanted to smile back, but part of her was so confused and afraid, and a third, ever shrinking part of her, was screaming a reminder not to forget what he'd done, who he was.

But she struggled to put that dying voice down, feeling it fade away, becoming even smaller inside her, and she pulled a rather forced smile to her own face instead. Fortunately, Suki touched her arm, breaking her eye contact with the Fire Prince, and she turned gladly towards her friend. "What's that about?" Suki asked, nodding towards Zuko. "I thought you hated him."

Katara glanced away. "I... don't know. He's... well, it's complicated."

"I see..." She pursed her lips. "Sokka says he's different now, and he's acting fine, but..." She trailed off, as if unable to place her finger on exactly what the 'but' was, though seemingly sure there was one.

Katara nodded at her friend's silence. "Exactly."

"Enough chit chat," the Deputy Chief's voice drifted over the crowd as the man stepped into the open area, his face sullen and serious. A big man in a black helmed guard uniform followed him, clearly disgruntled as well. "Dinner will be delayed tonight. There is a matter we need to address." The prisoners looked around, talk buzzing among them, wondering what exactly had the Deputy Chief in such an odd mood. "Zuko, son of Fire Lord Ozai, step forward," the man's voice cracked.

Katara's head spun around, and she saw Zuko wince at the way he'd been called. He stepped forward, and two guards grabbed him hostilely by the arms, half dragging him the rest of the way to the Chief. "What?" Zuko demanded in a surly voice. "What'd I do?"

"That's what I want to know," the man inquired.

As Zuko's gaped at the Deputy Chief in confusion, the man moved suddenly, quick as a lizard-snake, and placed clawed fingers at the base of Zuko's back. In the same motion, he wrenched his arm upwards, dragging the stiffened fingers up the injured prince's spine with fury. Zuko was caught off guard by the attack, and cried out horsely as the fingers raked upwards, tearing at the barely healed whip wounds. Katara winced as he did. She'd done her best to sooth the cuts the night before, but she knew they were still painful, and that what the Deputy Chief had just done was definitely bad for them.

Zuko cut his yelp short, immediately regaining control of himself. The Deputy Chief spun on him tenaciously. "Whip marks, Prince Zuko!" he roared. "Whip marks that I did not assign."

"I don't get it," Zuko growled. "I didn't do anything."

"Then why were you whipped?" the man shouted back, obviously frustrated. Katara listened closer, curious herself. The Deputy Chief grabbed Zuko's hair as he sneered in the Prince's face. "I have your tile in my office right now. There is no reason you should be punished without my knowledge. Yet when I passed this punisher earlier today," he motioned vaguely at the looming guard behind him, "I heard him talking about beating you, both last night, and the one before. So I am asking you again, Prince Zuko; What. Did. You. Do?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," the scarred young man answered defiantly.

The Deputy Chief tossed his head angrily. "Nothing happens in this prison that the Warden and I don't know about. Nothing! So until we figure this out, no one is going anywhere!" The prisoners stirred angrily, but the bossy guard rode right over them. "Choi," he barked, and Katara, who was paying attention, noticed Zuko wince at the man's name, ever so slightly. "How many lashes has the Prince earned himself?"

The punisher's heels snapped together. "Five the other night, sir," he reported, almost casually, despite his attentive position. "And ten more yesterday."

"Fifteen," the man counted, rubbing his chin in thought, searching for a clue. "Fifteen, Prince Zuko!" he roared, turning back to the royal prisoner, still pinned between two prison guards. "What could you have done to earn fifteen... lash...es..." Suddenly light seemed to come into his face. His voice calmed and his eyes narrowed. "Guards, bring me the waterbending girl, prisoner 16."

Katara was shocked at this turn of events, and gasped, surprised, as two sets of strong hands wrapped around her arms, pushing her forward towards the angry Deputy Chief.

"No!" Zuko shouted as she was dragged forward, straining slightly against his guards. "She's got nothing to do with this!"

But the Deputy Chief ignored him, and Katara prepared herself to fight against him the way she'd told the other prisoners to, prepared to refuse him everything. She remembered Sokka's warning not to cause trouble, and struggled to find a peaceful way to fight back instead. But any chance of defiance was cut short, as the only thing she hadn't prepared herself for happened. The Deputy Chief spun her suddenly around to face the crowd, her back to him, the guards, and Zuko, and pulled roughly at her shirt, lifting the back of it up to her shoulders. She squealed as she tried to hold the front over her stomach, and she thought she heard a few of the more obscene prisoners cat call. Her cheeks went red as the cold air rushed over her exposed back.

But the Deputy Chief scowled as he dropped her shirt, her guards still holding her tightly in place by her forearms. "No scars," the man said.

"What are you talking about?" Katara asked, her voice still breathy.

"You haven't been beaten even once," the Deputy Chief marveled. Katara stared at him confused, as the man she was now beginning to think might be crazy began laughing. "Oh, I see. Very clever, Prince Zuko. I don't know who helped you, how you did it, but I see now. This girl has been causing me headache after headache and no amount of punishment seems to get through to her. But now I understand why." Katara twisted her neck, struggling to see Zuko all the way behind her while her guards held her fast. The boy's face was pale, and his jaw so tight he looked like he was marching to his own death. Katara was even more confused. But the Deputy Chief's next sentence opened her eyes. "You've been taking her lashes," he accused.

Katara felt like her heart had stopped.

The Deputy Chief smiled at the firebender. "Yes, I can tell by your face you have," he leered, finally in control again. "Why did you do it, Prince Zuko? Did you fancy yourself some noble hero? Protecting those weaker than you? Are you out to save the girl, and win back the hearts of your countrymen? Because I have news for you - there is no honor in here. So if that's why you-"

"No."

The Deputy Warden stopped mid sentence as Zuko cut him off. "Excuse me?"

"That's not why."

"Then why the hell did you do it!" the man shouted, making it more and more obvious that understanding everything was his pet peeve.

But Katara didn't care, she could only stare at Zuko as his gaze passed over hers, her head twisted painfully, and confusion in her eyes as she asked the same question. "Why?"

He broke his eyes away from her, and his head lifted as he looked at the prisoners lined up before them. Then he raised his voice, and it seemed almost as if the guards holding him faded away, becoming nothing more than an escort to something much more important. "Because I believe her," he declared defiantly, and Katara felt that tremor again, the one that sunk deep into her very soul. This was the same Zuko that had spoken to Sokka when he thought about leaving; not the humbly honest Zuko, the regretful Zuko, the angry Zuko or the weak and injured Zuko, for she had seen all of these sides to him. No, this was Prince Zuko, speaking in that voice which scared her and enchanted her all at the same time, and she felt her breath being taken away. "I believe what she said before, and that's all you need to know. I know who I am, what I've done, and that none of you would hear it from me. So I did the only thing I could; I protected her, so she can continue to do... what I cannot."

He... believed her? What she had said, she had believed in, whole heartedly, and she had prayed it would reach even just one lowly prisoner. But she had no idea that the one it would reach would have been... him. He wasn't doing this because he thought she was weak, or because he wanted to win her over or trick her into thinking he was good. He was doing this because he believed in her; because he cared. _No wonder Sokka trusted him._

She remembered the state he'd been in the night before, the fever, the delirium, the blood. She recalled how weak he'd been, the humiliation he'd had to go through, and how he faced it all with a set face and a grim expression. She realized now what he'd been doing, and how awkwardly he tried to hide it from her, as well as why Sokka hadn't told her. All that pain, everything he had endured, was her fault. She had earned it, and he had taken it, not to prove anything, but because that's who he was. He was Zuko. A prince without a country, yet she had never seen anyone more noble than he looked in that moment, not in all her travels.

But the Deputy Chief didn't seem to agree. "You think, even for a second, people can change their nature so quickly?" He chuckled sinisterly. "You honorable types are so... stupid," he hissed the the last part, glancing between the two. "But now I know how to deal with you," he added, a familiar tone coming into his voice.

Suddenly, it clicked in Katara's mind. "That's why I know you!" she realized. "You're the guard who caught me - the one who made me eat the pill!"

"Yes," the man smiled. "And if it worked once, it will work again. I've had enough of your sob stories and foolish preaching." He gestured to his guards, who were ready to abide his every command. "If the prince wants her beatings, give them to him! But from now on, it will be public." He glanced down at Zuko, his eyes angry. "I want her to see how much pain you're in." Zuko snarled at him, but the guards held him back. "I want every one to see it! How great this noble prince and foolhardy girl actually are in the Boiling Rock. You think to inspire pride?" he added to Katara. "Then I will snuff it out of him. Starting tonight, all of the Water Tribe girl's punishments will go to Prince Zuko, to be carried out publicly, before every meal!"

"Sir!" the guards nodded.

"Tonight, the two of you have earned yourselves five more lashes."

"But we didn't do anything!" Katara protested.

"You broke my rules!" the man shouted back at her. "You caused this ruckus! As an example, and so that you understand exactly how serious I am, this boy will reap the consequences. Chain him up while I take roll!"

Katara's guards shoved her back towards her spot, and she stumbled a few steps, forgetting her promise to Sokka. "You horrible jerk!" she shouted as she regained her balance and turned around.

"Me?" the Deputy Chief asked. "Hardly. You brought this upon yourselves. I'm merely administering discipline. Everything that happens to him from now on, is on your head. Is there something more you would like to add to his punishment?"

"I'll show you-"

"Katara, stop!" Zuko shouted. "There are other ways to deal with this."

"Shut up, you," one of his guards spat, conking him on the head.

"Let him go!" she shouted, throwing herself at the Deputy Chief.

"Chey, stop her!" Zuko commanded.

"Yes, your highness!" a voice barked behind her.

And before Katara knew what was happening, two hands wrapped around her slim waist and dragged her back to her spot. "Let me go!" she shouted at her captor. "This can't happen! We can't just sit here and do nothing!"

"Begging your pardon, Miss Katara," Chey disagreed, "but that's what his majesty wants."

Katara shook the scruffy man off her with a snarl, but a big hand closed around her shoulder. She glanced up at Chi Tzang's huge form. "Don't make things worse," he said, holding her still.

"But they-"

"Believe in him." The big man's voice carried a finality that Katara could not ignore.

Realizing she even had less of a chance against his hulking arm than his serious voice, she stopped struggling, feeling tears come to her eyes. Then she watched, defeated, as Zuko was dragged up the steps to the punishing block, his shirt pulled off, and his hands stretched far above his head so the shackles could be latched. His toes barely reached the ground, but he showed no weakness, even as the arrow wound stretched out, starting to bleed again. His eyes were steady, and they were staring at her.

The moment dragged on endlessly as the Deputy Chief called roll. Katara felt her own fear and dread rising as the sentence was prolonged, allowing the fear of it to seep into her. But Zuko's breathing was calm. He didn't even seem to notice the punisher watching him anxiously, staring at the fading wounds on his back suspiciously, and smiling hungrily at the thought of fresh blood. But Zuko didn't look away, and Katara couldn't tear her eyes from his. They were like the element he commanded, shinning and shifting, beautiful but deadly, and untouchable, even by the Deputy Chief's delay.

Finally the man called the last name. "Choi, you may begin," he motioned at the punisher. "Your dinner is much shorter today, prisoners, but you will not be released to the meal hall until Prince Zuko here has received all five of his lashes. If you are frustrated by that, you know who to blame," he added, glancing pointedly at Zuko before leaving, his stride officially calm again.

The prisoners watched, anger and hunger within them, as the big punisher stepped up behind Zuko, unfurling a thick whip from his belt. He huffed a small, steamy breath as he circled his pray, flicking his wrist to send ripples down the whip. "You almost screamed for the Deputy," he taunted the Prince. "Today, perhaps, you will scream for me too..."

Katara swallowed. But Zuko's eyes never left hers, and he didn't even acknowledge the man before him, staring past the guard as if he weren't there. The man's brow dropped angrily. "Five lashes," he pronounced, stopping behind Zuko. "And I'm putting my all into each and every one." Zuko continued to ignore him. "One."

Katara squeezed her eyes shut as the whip fell, unable to watch. The crack stung in her ears like a death sentence. Tears were pouring from her blue eyes now, and she started to turn away.

But Chi Tzang's hand tightened on her shoulder. "Watch," he directed.

"I can't," Katara wept, hearing the second lash fall.

"He's doing this for you," Chi Tzang insisted. "Watch."

Katara opened her eyes, tearful though they were, and watched. The man was preparing to deliver a third lash, his arm drawn back, and Katara had to fight the urge not to scream, not to look away, as it landed with a crash. Zuko's body swung slightly in the chains, the impact of the whip carrying the full weight of the heavy punisher with it. But he didn't cry out. His jaw was tight shut, and he didn't scream once. Instead, his face lifted again, his one remaining eyebrow twitching almost angrily, and his eyes rose back to hers.

She gasped as those golden eyes pierced her soul. He exhaled heavily and steam issued from his nose. With each breath, he was doing what she'd preached - he was fighting. He wasn't doing this because he was being hopelessly beaten. He was doing this, because _he _had chosen to. Each lash proved his point; proved _her_ point. Each stinging swipe was for a cause. And Katara wasn't the only one who saw it.

"He isn't... normal," Suki whispered.

"What did you expect?" Chey asked as the next whip fell, and Zuko's eyes stayed locked on Katara's. "He's a prince."

"He's a man," Chi Tzang corrected. "And they're not taking away his pride. You don't strip a real man of pride by beating him down. You make him stronger that way."

"Why won't you... scream for me!" the punisher shouted, dropping the fifth and final blow across Zuko's back.

It hit the prince hard enough to swing his whole body, almost pulling his feet off the ground, but Zuko didn't even whimper, his resolve was so strong. The punisher behind him was breathing heavily as he pulled his whip back in, clearly disappointed he hadn't made his victim cry, but the lashes were done, and so was he. He turned to the prison guards angrily. "Post a guard around his cell tonight," the big man commanded. "He's healing unnaturally quickly."

The two guards glanced at each other, clearly unsure of the chain of command, but then nodded. "We'll see to it," the older guard spoke up.

The punisher nodded, and motioned to the dinner hall. "Open the doors," he declared. "I'm done."

The guard by the dinner doors opened them for the prisoners. "You have ten minutes left. Enjoy it, filth," he told them, as hungry prisoners rushed past him.

But Katara pulled free of Chi Tzang's now loose grasp, ignoring whatever it was Suki said as she ran pass the Kyoshi warrior. None of that was important. Not while Zuko was still staring at her.

She climbed the two steps up to the metal platform where Zuko was bound, and the guards made no move to stop her. That fire was still in his eyes, she felt as if it were burning, not her, but keeping him alive. His jaw was locked, and he followed her as if unable to look away as she drew closer. She realized he was trembling.

When she got close enough, she reached up, standing on tip toe to reach, and wrapped her arms through his and around his neck. He continued to stare at her, his jaw clamped shut so hard his cheeks were turning white. And then finally, she broke eye contact, pulling his head down to her, and burying her own in his shoulder. "It's all right," she whispered in his ear. "It's over."

The mindless fight seemed to go out of him, and his body suddenly relaxed, his muscles going slack. His jaw dropped, and the scream he must have been holding back behind those tightly clamped teeth broke free. He cried out into her shoulder, her shirt and hair muffling his voice so that no one else could hear, her arms shielding him so that no one could see him choking for air, holding back tears. "I'm sorry," she consoled him, stretching as tall as she could while she stroked his hair, letting him gasp painfully against her. "I'm so sorry..."

"Ten minutes ain't even enough to get in line!" a voice growled from behind her. "We're all going to bed hungry tonight, and guess who's fault it is?" a cocky Fire Nation man with a friend in toe mocked.

"Get away from him," Katara hissed, threat evident in her voice.

"Whoa! The little girly's got some spunk!" the man laughed, his partner chuckling moronically.

"Back off, Ga," a scrawny fellow warned, stepping up onto the discipline platform.

Ga smiled. "What, Gouliang, feeling grateful to the prince for saving you earlier? You gonna protect him all by your lonesome? Or do you want to join him up there on display?"

"He's not alone," Chi Tzang's big voice cut in as he and Chey stepped up between Zuko and the men, crossing their arms.

"Chi Tzang!" Ga marveled. "You throwing your lot in with these traitors and wackos now? I thought you was with us."

"Well, you thought wrong, punk," the man replied, glancing around to see a crowd appearing around the platform. "In case you haven't noticed, the pecking order of things has been changing around here. There is no 'us' and 'them' anymore. Just cowards and those of us who still have our pride. Which one are you, Da?"

Someone from the crowd shook a pale-skinned fist. "You sound just like her, Chi Tzang!" he accused, pointing at Katara angrily.

"Yeah," someone else agreed vehemently. "We should kick both her's and the prince's hides right now and put an end to all this unity nonsense!"

"Enough!" Suki shouted, stepping up beside Katara, Chi Tzang and Chey. "You people disgust me."

Silently, Wei stepped up beside her, a few of his men moving with him. Then Chi Tzang's friend Chinsei climbed up as well, and smiled at his friend awkwardly.

Before anyone else could say anything, the end of dinner bell rang, and guards began driving the frustrated, hungry prisoners back to their cells. "Let him down," one of them barked. "Dinner's over."

A guard unchained Zuko and he slumped, Katara struggling to hold him up. Chi Tzang and Wei both reached out to help, but Zuko shook his head slightly, and somehow, managed to find his feet, still leaning heavily on the dark skinned girl. Their friends followed them as the waterbender and the Fire Prince stumbled down the steps and limped into Zuko's cell, a guard already posted by his door. Katara helped him lie face down on his mattress, struggling not to let her face heat whenever she pressed herself against his bare chest, again. "I'll come back for you tonight," she promised before leaving.

"No," Zuko grunted, his teeth gritted. "There's a guard."

"I'll figure something out," she assured him. "And Zuko?" He turned his head slightly. "I really am... sorry."

Nothing else needed to be said. For the first time ever the blue eyed girl from the Southern Water Tribe had forgotten about all of Zuko's past misgivings. The arrogant betrayer had disappeared. The furious prince obsessed with the Avatar vanished.

Only the boy from the crystal caverns remained.

And her heart wept, not really sure why.

* * *

**Extra Author's Note:**

_artsyelric: ps. when they say "to be carried out publicly, before every meal" that doesn't mean that every meal he will be punished, it means any punishment earned will be delivered publicly before a meal. so no, not every night, just any night they earn it, which katara is now determined not to do. just clearing that up for anyone confused..._


	14. Chapter 14:New Arrivals

Author's note:

_artsyelric: and so our tormenting of zuko ends, and we return to our mockery of cannon. but today we're introducing a special guest to the boiling rock, so keep your eyes peeled! this chapter's gonna be rock-in'! (haha, i made a sokka joke XDD)  
_

**Trombe: Lame.**

_artsyelric: don't blame me, blame sokka. he got in my head made me XPP_

**Trombe: Anyway between playing Ninja Gaiden II and going to work, I've got almost no time left to this story. Almost. I wouldn't do that to you guys. You can bet I'm with this all the way. Oh and Mai shows up. Yay. Hopefully in this fic she is not a crazy psycho bitch like in majority of the Zutara fics I've read. Now thats...crazy.**

_artsyelric: hopefully? what hopefully? in this story, we are gods! gods i say! so if we say mai's not crazy psycho bitch, she's not. she's just a person. who used to date zuko..._

**Trombe: Did you know, the Speed Racer song is stuck in my head?**

_arstyelric: shut up and go write your zumai! maiko! thingy..._

**Trombe: I already did. So go read, readers. And do whatever it is you do after you read our story.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 14: New Arrivals  
**

* * *

"Sokka, stop fooling around and get us that food," Katara's voice chastised her brother.

Zuko's head lifted off the pile of worn rags he had to make due for a pillow, worry evident on his face, but he immediately groaned, the slicing pain in his back renewing as he moved. Light streamed into his cell as Katara's figure flowed into his room. "What are you doing?" Zuko whispered through his teeth, staying as still as possible. "What about the guard?"

"Oh," Katara grinned. "Sokka relieved him. It's his shift for the next two and a half hours, so we're safe for a little bit." Her smile faltered as she looked over him. She was carrying a cup of water in her hand, and she immediately covered her hands with it, the glowing bending form lighting her fingers, and casting shadows across the otherwise dark room. As she knelt beside his bed and let her fingers ghost across the lashes, her face was troubled. "Zuko, I-"

"Don't," he managed, before she could continue. "I chose this."

"But it was my-"

"That's another thing," he gritted through the pain. "I don't want your forgiveness because of this... because you're guilty. You'd do it, Katara, I know you would. But you're right about me too; there's always been a darkness within me. I'd be lying if I said there wasn't. You of all people, know that." One glance at her and he knew she thought of the events of Ba Sing Se.

Katara stopped healing him, leaning back so she could see his face in the dim light. "I don't understand."

"I don't know..." He ran a hand through his hair in frustration as he tried to express himself, but stopped halfway as his back twinged. "You've just been so... mad at me lately, that I kind of felt like proving to you that I was a good person would... _make _me a good person. If you just forgive me because you feel guilty, then... I'll never know if I could have been the kind of person you would have forgiven. I'll feel like I cheated."

"Well, that's just... that's ridiculous," she settled for, returning her fingers to his back.

He sighed, wishing he could see her, gauge her reaction. "Yeah... I suppose."

"As if I would forgive you that easily."

Zuko thought his eyes were going to pop from his skull, and he turned to stare at the waterbending girl in shock, not even caring that it hurt his back to move that much. _Easily! What does she..._

But his thought ended abruptly as he saw she was smiling mischievously. Zuko was so shocked, he almost laughed. The way her lips twitched showed she was holding back a laugh as well. They curled beautifully at each corner, and her eyes sparkled, even bluer in the light of her glowing fingers. The way her face moved was-

The cell door slid open with a clang. "I still say it would have been safer to do this in the cooler," Sokka insisted. "Next time listen to what I say, Katara."

"Well, hopefully, there won't be a next time," she replied, turning away from her brother to sink her fingers back into a cut on Zuko's exposed spine.

"Yes, please no next time," Zuko groaned, feeling the sweet touch of her fingers like cool solvent on his bleeding back.

"Besides," Katara continued almost before he finished, "that place is freezing, and cramped. It is not suitable for treating injured, especially not if they might get a fever from just being in there!"

"Yeah," Zuko agreed a second time, "definitely freezing."

Sokka snorted at the double team. "I think I liked it better when the two of you weren't getting along."

"Really Sokka?" Katara asked. "Because I could still-"

"Joking!" the boy cut in. "Can't anyone take a joke anymore?"

"Aren't you supposed to be on guard duty?" Zuko asked, still sharing the Water Tribe boy's worries.

He nodded. "Yeah, but I wanted to bring you guys these first," he added, pulling two bowls of rice and two plates smashed together to cover a helping of meat stew out of his uniform.

"Where were you keeping those?" Katara asked suspiciously.

But Zuko didn't care. The moment the meat and food had appeared, his mouth had begun watering, and his stomach roiled painfully. He'd been starving yesterday after Katara's healing, like she'd predicted, and then he'd missed dinner just to be beaten again. He could have eaten an entire hippo-cow if he'd just had one. "We get fed a little better than you guys up in the lounge," Sokka admitted, as he ignored his sister. "So I brought you guys my dinner."

Zuko remembered the guard's lounge and the lunch he'd had there. Right now, thoughts of food were overwhelming even his pleasure at the healing sensations Katara's fingers were making on his back. "Thanks," he managed, his stomach rumbling loudly over him.

He felt his face flush as Sokka pulled up the chair and laughed. "I know the feeling," he grinned, as he set the food down on the wooden chair in front of Zuko's bed, where he could reach it while Katara healed him. "I'll rap on the door if anyone comes," he added, pulling his helmet back on and leaving the cell, closing the door behind him.

Zuko pushed himself up on his elbows, not even caring that his back was still hurting. Solemnly he looked at his newfound healer, who only shook her head slowly. "You need it more then I do. Please... eat." All the Fire Prince could do was look at her awkwardly.

"...Thank you." He nodded his head in a grateful gesture.

Then he quickly he began heaping rice and spiced meat into his mouth, gulping down the food his body so desperately craved. He was just going for a third mouthful, when suddenly Katara rapped him squarely in the back of his head, causing him to choke. "Eat slowly," she reprimanded. "And chew. Or you'll just throw it all back up."

Zuko swallowed and nodded. As he ate slowly and let Katara's gentle fingers continue working gently into his back, he realized he had never felt this good. Not even being pampered in the palace had felt this wonderful. Hunger had a way of humbling a man. Right now, with her touching him, with real food in his mouth, he didn't even need to remember that Katara didn't hate him anymore to be content, but knowing that she had forgiven him made him almost giddy.

Almost.

After a time, he finished his portion of the food, and Katara had just rolled him over so that she could get a look at the arrow wound, when Sokka banged on the door. Katara's eyes opened wide as she stared at Zuko, and he felt his own heart began racing. "Under the bed," he whispered, and Katara rushed to obey.

Throwing his shirt over the food and chair, Zuko rolled onto his stomach, trying to look like he was suffering. But when the door slid open, it was just Sokka, all alone.

Zuko heaved a sigh of relief. "Sokka, what were you banging for?"

"What? Nothing," the boy responded quickly. "I was just trying to get in."

Katara rolled out from under the bed immediately. "Why?" she demanded. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I was just… nervous."

Zuko was beginning to get frustrated with the overly worried warrior when Katara cut in, holding out a hand to quiet him. "Sokka," she started, in a voice that Zuko was unfamiliar with. "What's going on? You've been sort of... jumpy lately."

Sokka sighed. "Tomorrow… tomorrow morning we're expecting the new shipment of prisoners."

Katara's eyes widened. "Dad…"

Sokka nodded. "That's the thing. We're gambling here, Katara. All of this for a slight chance. And if he's not there, then this was a waste. All of this," he added, motioning at Zuko, "would be for nothing."

Katara shook her head negatively. "Not for nothing, Sokka," she replied. "At the very least, we've done some good here, for the prisoners."

"Well, whoop-dee-doo," he brother mocked. "But, in case you forgot, our mission was the get Dad and get out of here before Azula comes. Tomorrow we'll find out if that's even possible."

The boy's head dropped, and Katara glanced at Zuko, who shrugged. Sighing, she moved over to her brother and wrapped an arm around his waist. "Don't fret so much Sokka," she recommended. "Thinking about it now won't do anything to change what will happen tomorrow. Either way, it was worth the wait. And we'll figure out how to get out of here once we're all together again, with Dad."

"You really think he's coming?" Sokka whispered.

Katara smiled and bumped his nose with hers. "Call it my instincts."

"Hey," he growled, pushing her off. "I thought you didn't believe in those." He squinted at her. "You making fun of me?"

"Not at all," she grinned. "Now get outside and keep watch. I'm almost done with him, and then we can all get some sleep. I want to be well rested when Dad comes."

Sokka smiled, and moved back to his post again. Katara watched the closed cell door for a minute, as if she could see her brother through it, then turned back to her patient. She glanced at the empty plates. "You can eat my rice too," she told him.

Zuko shook his head. "You didn't get anything to eat today or yesterday-"

"I told you you need your strength. Suki smuggled me some food. I'm fine."

Normally honor would have held him back from such an action. But the earnest look she gave him with those blue eyes, coupled with his still growling stomach, made him think twice. Surely he could be honorable some other time. "How do you do that?" he asked, after his first mouthful.

"What?" she asked.

"Calm him down like that," he directed at Sokka.

"Oh, same way as you, I guess," she smiled.

"Me?" Zuko nearly choked on the rice.

"Yeah," Katara replied. "Like how you talked to him down on the beach, when we decided not to escape with Chi Tzang. That was the same thing."

"No," Zuko sighed, remembering it. "I don't think it was the same at all."

"Oh..." Katara paused, then glanced at him. "Then it's probably just because I'm his sister - that's what we do, after all!" she added, merrily. "Taking care of our stupid older brothers..."

Zuko snorted. "Not all little sisters," he pointed out.

"Well, us good ones, anyway." Katara smiled to show she meant no ill will, and Zuko found himself smiling back.

"I really hope we do find your father tomorrow," he offered.

"Yeah," she agreed, kneeling beside him and coating her hand again. "Me too."

After that, Katara started healing him, silent again, but it was a comfortable quiet, at least for Zuko. As he sat, chewing the rice intentionally slowly as she'd instructed, she worked on his wound. Since it wasn't infected any more, everything she did was calm and soothing. Zuko remembered setting the finished rice bowl down, and he dimly recalled her telling him to lay down at one point as well. But after that, all he remembered was the tantalizing feel of her fingers, and the warm glow of her healing sinking pleasantly into his aching muscles...

...and then the sweet peace of sleep...

* * *

"Guys, guys, come on!" Sokka insisted excitedly. "The gondola's moving!"

"I still don't understand why we all had to sneak out of our cells to see," Suki pointed out. "If we get caught-" Her boyfriend glared at her. "I was just saying..."

"If Dad's here, I want to see," Katara spoke up, her voice full of emotion.

Suki nodded. "All right, but let's not be too hasty."

"Agreed," Sokka grinned, sneaking around the corner of the guard tower so he could see the gondola's arrival. "This is it. Take a look."

The intensity in the air was so think they could taste it, but Zuko, Katara and Suki all crowded around the anxious warrior and peered curiously towards the arriving gondola. As it landed, Sokka's mood was dropping again, and he glanced away as the gondola locked into a stopped position. "If he's not there, we risked everything for nothing, and it''ll be the last time I'll ever be optimistic."

"But you aren't optimistic," Katara reminded him.

"Sush!" He gestured to his sister before turning around, unable to see Katara rolling her eyes.

"We really shouldn't have stayed..." He murmured softly, trying to soothe his anxiety by stroking his chin.

Suki reached around to take his unoccupied hand with her own. "We had to," she said, in a strong, reassuring voice.

"I know." Sokka squeezed her hand slightly in defeated agreement. Calm once again, Sokka's eyes did not flinch as he scouted the arriving party. "Come on, come on," he chanted instead, as a guard moved to open the doors.

"It'll be fine," Katara whispered to her brother as a big man with three pointed sprouts of facial hair stepped off the lift first, sporting a gold band through both nostrils like a bull-camel.

"Is that him?" Zuko asked.

Sokka stiffened in an affronted manner. "My Dad doesn't have a nose ring!" he protested, and Katara hid her face behind her hand as she chuckled, picturing her father with one.

With the passing of more and more prisoners moving off the gondola, so too did Sokka's fear grew. "How about that?" Suki asked, gesturing at at a taller man with a ponytail.

"No!" Sokka hissed.

"How about him?" Zuko offered, pointing at a hunched fellow with glowering eyes.

"How old do you think he is?" Sokka humphed.

"Just asking," Zuko apologized, holding two hands up before him to show he meant no harm.

Suki and Katara smiled playfully at each other when Sokka muttered and turned back to his search, and Zuko actually found himself grinning along. But Suki's mirth faded when she noticed Zuko's participation. She, at least, was suspicious of the firebender still.

"Where is he?" Sokka whispered, bringing everyone's attention back to the matter at hand.

Now the tension really was starting to build. Most of the prisoners were unloaded, and it appeared no one had seen the water tribe sibling's father yet. Even Katara was beginning to fidget nervously. One last man trickled out of the open gondola doors, and then it seemed empty.

"That's it?" Sokka asked. "That can't be it!"

Suki glanced at Katara, distressed, and touched the warrior's shoulder encouragingly. "I'm sorry Sokka..."

"Oh no..." he drooped, his head hanging.

"Hey, you!" a guard barked, moving into the gondola. Sokka's head raised desperately. "Get off the gondola!"

Sokka's eyes widened, his face lighting up as a man stepped into the opening and onto the Boiling Rock's loading dock. Zuko didn't even need to hear him whisper "Dad," to know that this man was their father. His blue eyes shared the same compassionate intensity that both his children possessed, and he moved with the grace of a trained warrior, seemingly tall despite his height. He even had a wolf-tail, just like his son's, and the thick, dark brown locks could only belong in their family. He stood erect, the chains doing nothing to hinder his proud appearance. This was Hakoda, Chief of the Southern Water Tribe. Katara's eyes shone as she grabbed her brother's arm. "It's him, Katara," Sokka whispered.

"You were right, Sokka," she congratulated him. "It's Dad..."

The two hugged each other excitedly as their father left the gondola. "I said, off," the guard snorted again. "Both of you!"

And the entire gondola shifted as the huge, hulking form of a second man moved through the door, stepping up beside Hakoda as he moved down the ramp. Zuko was just shocked to see such a burly man, but Sokka and Katara gaped at him.

"Didn't you hear me?! I said move!" The guard shouted.

"Keep your hands off The Boulder, wretch! The Boulder can walk himself out!" the heavily muscled man bellowed.

"No way," Katara breathed in disbelief. "It's..."

"The Boulder!" Sokka finished, in an incredibly over-dramatized voice.

* * *

"Line 'em up for the Warden!"

Everyone's heads turned towards the doorway through which the Warden strode, his personal guards at his sides. The soldiers in on the platform rushed to line up, making room for the prisoners to create a line before the Warden for inspection. "I'm going," Sokka said, stepping away from his friends.

"What?" Katara hissed, grabbing at her brother as Sokka slipped lithely out of her grasp. "Get back here!"

"She's right," Zuko insisted. "Now isn't the time to just... run off..."

But Sokka was already too far gone. "What about us?" Suki called.

"Go back to your cells," he replied. "I'll come later..."

He could tell his friends were frustrated at him, but he ignored them as he darted into the area where the prisoners were lining up. He topped the steps and his eyes immediately landed on the hulking form of the Boulder. He felt a small shiver of excitement go up his spine. Even though he'd worked with - and even commanded - the other man, he still felt crazy whenever he was near the Boulder, since he had never gotten over watching him live in the Earth Rumble. But now was not the time to act the fan. The man next to him drew Sokka's attention even stronger, and his eyes darted downwards. "Dad..." His feet slowed for a second.

But then he pushed up through the soldiers. "Excuse me," he bumped his way through the line impertinently. "Coming through. The Warden wants me over there," he added, gesturing as he slipped through the larger guards and hustled to line up near the end, where he had a clear view of his father.

"Does your hearing suffer?! The Boulder already told you to keep your hands off!" The big man pulled his arm away from the guard escorting him to his spot.

"My, what... brash behavior," the Warden mocked as the Boulder settled into his place. "Welcome to the Boiling Rock," he continued, surveying the newly arrived prisoners. "I'm sure you've all heard the horrible rumors about our little island. Well, I just want to tell you," he said in a falsely compromising voice, "that they don't have to be true." He began walking down the line of men, heading towards Hakoda and the Boulder. "As long as you do everything I say," he added, stopping right in front of Sokka's father. His face quirked as he noticed Hakoda was looking pointedly away. "Look me in the eye when I'm talking to you," he demanded, inches from Hakoda's face.

The disguised guard watched his father's brow twitch, irritated. Then, "No."

Sokka smiled. _Way to go Dad, you tell him..._ But the Warden didn't seem to find it so amusing. "Oh?" he asked, clearly peeved. "You'd rather look at my shoes? Then take a look!" he roared, kicking a foot up and hooking Hakoda's handcuffs with his heal, dragging the proud man down to stare at his feet.

Some of the guards made awed noises, and even Sokka's mouth dropped, though for a different reason. The Warden was watching his father suspiciously. "I know exactly who you are, Hakoda of the Water Tribe," the man smiled knowingly. "So strong willed. But don't worry. We'll get rid of that in time."

"I doubt it," Hakoda denied, so quiet Sokka almost missed it.

"What was that?" the Warden barked.

"If you've heard of me, then you'll know I'm not someone who," he pulled his chains out from under the Warden's feet, making him stumble, "bends easily!"

The Warden quickly regained his footing, but instead of being angry, he smiled at Hakoda. "Oh, yes. You're every bit as feisty as your daughter," he mocked, stroking his chin malevolently.

"Katara?" Hakoda gasped. "How do you know my daughter?" His tone cool and collected, but one could tell the fury that swelled within those words.

"Why, didn't they tell you? She's here." The father's eyebrows twitched, worried. "Charming girl too, so full of spunk. But I think we've got her number now... She'll be pleased to know you're joining her, until Princess Azula comes to see her."

Hakoda growled, starting to rise, but the Warden's hand on his head stopped him. "Ah ah ah," he chided. "If you cared about her, you'd rethink that move..." Hakoda's arm shook, but then he dropped his fists back to the ground. The Warden smiled wickedly. "Now look me in the eye!" he commanded, and Hakoda slowly raised his eyes until they met the Warden's. "See? Isn't that better? You will all do as I say, or pay the price. You will all- wo... woa!"

Hakoda lifted his hands slightly and caught the Warden's foot with his chain, tripping the arrogant man so he landed smack on his face. The guards gasped and rushed to help, except Sokka, who struggled to hide a laugh. But he didn't have to hide it much. A big, booming chuckle filled the cement platform as the Boulder chortled loudly. "Ha ha ha!" he roared. "The Boulder finds your lack of dexterity amusing, little man!"

"Are you okay, sir?" a guard asked, reaching out to help the Warden up.

But he sprang to his feet on his own. "I'm fine." He spun back towards the giant, laughing man, and the insolently grinning Hakoda, still as wicked as his boyhood days, and spun away angrily. "Get these prisoners out of my sight," he ranted instead, stomping off with his person guards in tow.

Sokka could still hear the Boulder laughing and slapping Hakoda's back as the prisoners were marched down into the holding cells, and the warrior slunk off to find his father's new cell.

* * *

Hakoda was finally allowed to leave the new prisoners when they assigned him to his own cell, number 62. The Boulder was separated from him, in a cell on the top level. The guard who'd locked him in had informed him briefly that his door would open again at the dinner bell, and after a brief roll call, he'd be feed. But that he'd better know his cell number for roll call, or he wouldn't make it to dinner. Then he'd been shut in, with nothing but his worried thoughts to accompany him,

_You're ever bit as feisty as your daughter... didn't they tell you? She's here..._

The last time he had seen Katara had been when he'd bid the children farewell after the failed invasion attempt. He had wanted to believe that Sokka, Katara and the avatar had gotten away, that they were safe. But now his worries were creeping up on him.

Before Katara had shown up on his ship with the injured avatar after Ba Sing Se's fall, Hakoda had still thought of her as the small girl he'd left behind in the village. When he had seen her then... Katara was no longer the baby he'd abandoned. She was a beautiful woman, strong, courageous, and compassionate, like her mother. She had grown so much... and he had missed all of it.

He understood why she had felt so resentful of him then, without even meaning to. He had hardly known her when he saw her; how could she know him at all? But he had seen her fight, and he had seen her cry. He had seen the passion in her eyes, and the way she cared for the avatar. In that short time, he had come to love her again, and he had realized that though she had become so grown up, and such a master bender, she was still his baby. Just thinking about her here, in a place like this, made him so angry. _Katara, why are you here..._

He leaned back against his cell wall, frustrated and impatient, but unable to change any of it. There was nothing to do but wait for dinner, and then try and find out what he could about her...

But just as these thoughts were thinking in, something interrupted his reminiscing. His prison door slid open and a guard stepped resolutely into his cell. Hakoda stared at him, prepared for anything. "Thank goodness you're okay!" The guard exclaimed as the door closed behind him.

_Okay, anything but that, _he amended to himself. The guard moved towards him suddenly, and Hakoda jumped to his feet, taking a defensive stance. This guard was definitely off his rocker. "You take one step closer, and you'll see just how 'okay' I am," he warned, keeping his fist threateningly close to the strange man's face.

The guard halted, but for some reason, he smiled. Keeping his distance, he reached up and lifted his visor. "Dad, it's me," he grinned, pointing at his face.

Hakoda had to remind himself to breath. Two blue eyes stared back at him out of the familiar face of his son. He felt his eyes watering as his fist dropped, unnoticed. "Sokka!" he cried, as the disguised guard tossed his helmet uselessly aside. Hakoda reached out, and Sokka stepped into his embrace. Not understanding what was happening, and not even caring for the moment, he embraced the boy he feared he would never see again, holding him as tightly as he could. "My son," he whispered, as Sokka held him back just as close.

Stepping back, he held the boy at arms length. "You know, Sokka, you should be more careful with that guard uniform on. I almost punched you in the gut."

"Yeah," he admitted hesitantly, "I ran into that problem earlier... A lot, actually..." He peered cautiously out the barred cell window before turning back to his father. "So, where's Bato? Where's everyone else from the invasion?"

"The others are being held at a prison near the fire nation palace," Hakoda informed him as he sat down on his cot, flush against the floor. "They singled me out as their leader and sent me here."

"Yeah, there's a lot of folks like that here," the younger put in. "What about the Boulder?"

Hakoda smiled. "The other prison just couldn't handle him. Kept smashing through walls, demanding more food, and just being generally surely. I'm sure you can imagine..." Sokka grinned enthusiastically as he took a seat beside his dad. "He's right loyal though, that one," the seasoned warrior added. "He's stuck with me through this whole thing. Couldn't ask for a better man."

"That's the Boulder," Sokka agreed, his goofy grin widening.

"Yeah, well, that's not all. Before I left the last prison, I met some young women who said they knew you. The... Oshinama fighters?" Hakoda ventured.

"You mean the Kyoshi warriors?" Sokka offered.

"That's right," Hakoda agreed.

The boy nodded knowingly. "Their leader Suki's here, and she's gonna escape with us."

"Us?" Hakoda put in.

"Yeah," Sokka replied.

He hesitated. Then, "so, you know your sister is here?"

His son nodded, and it felt like a weight lifted from his shoulders. "She came in with us to rescue you."

"Oh, thank the spirits," he sighed. "I was so worried. Why does the Warden have her?"

"Yeah," Sokka cringed. "We, ah... kinda messed up. She and another of our friends got caught. But, it's okay! I've still got my cover, you're here, and we're all set to hatch an escape plan. You know Katara, she's even got some of the prisoners riled up. They're so into her, they'll probably even help us escape!"

"Good," His father complemented. "We'll need all the help we can get."

"And..." Hakoda raised an eyebrow, encouraging his son to continue. "You know Prince Zuko?"

"The son of the Fire Lord?" he supplied, remembering the Warden's implication that Azula would be coming for Katara. He scratched his temple worriedly. "I don't know him, but I know of him."

"Well, he's here too," the boy informed.

"Sounds like a major problem," Hakoda calculated, trying to add a medaling Prince into his concept of the supposedly inescapable prison, and feeling their odds getting worse.

But Sokka shook his head. "Actually," he revealed, "he's on our side now. He's the friend that I was talking about." Hakoda gave him the most skeptical stare even Sokka had never seen. "I know," he reassured his father, "I had the same reaction. After all he's done, it was hard to trust him. But he's really proven himself, and I never would of found you without his help. Besides," he added, glancing away from his dad, "he's done a lot to help Katara, and he's really trying. Forget not even being able to find you, we'd both probably be in pretty deep trouble in this prison with him..."

Hakoda could tell that his son wasn't ready to reveal everything they'd been through just yet, but if he trusted this Zuko, then it was good enough for Hakoda. All of his other friends had proved extremely helpful after all, even the... strange ones. So Hakoda nodded in acceptance and moved on. "So, do you have a plan?" he asked, anxious to get his children out of the horrible place he could tell this was shaping up to be.

"We had one," Sokka explained, "but some of the other prisoners got involved and ruined it. I don't know if there's another way off this island," he finished, hugging his legs as he sunk into a mild depression.

His father could tell it was time for a pick me up. Slapping his son on the back, he leaned in as he smiled. "Sokka, there's no prison in the world that can hold two water tribe geniuses," he confided.

"Well then, we'd better find two," the boy groaned.

Hakoda laughed, taking the comment as a joke, and eventually his laughter caught on. Sokka was more like his father than the boy knew, and soon his foul mood was fading, a jovial smile replacing it.

"So," he started, getting down to business, "what's our situation, my boy? It's time to start brainstorming."

* * *

"Zuko," a voice called softly through the cell door, and the Fire Prince quickly rushed to the small window. "Are you there?"

"I'm here," he answered, seeing Sokka's helmed face on the other side.

"I just got done talking with my Dad. We came up with an escape plan together," he added, sounding more excited than Zuko had seen him since the cooler idea. He was definitely getting his spunk back since the arrival of the new prisoners. It was amazing what a change such a short time with his father had produced on the boy. Zuko wondered what kind of things his father had told him. _Probably like Uncle, _he realized. _He always made me feel better somehow. Well, usually...  
_

Zuko opened his mouth to ask what the new plan was, but another voice cut him off. "What are you doing here?" He felt himself tense that the voice of a foreign guard.

"I was just telling this dirty lowlife what I think of him," Sokka thought up on the spot.

"Well," the guard denied, "you'll have to do that later." Something was definitely up. This was too strange a time for the usual routines. Whatever was happening, it was bad. "He's coming with us."

_Definitely bad..._

"Why?" Sokka questioned lamely.

"Because we have orders straight from the Warden, that's why," the female barked.

Putting on a pleading act, Sokka punched a fist into his palm. "Could I just get ten more seconds to rough him up a bit?" he begged.

Surprisingly, the lady smiled. "Fine, ten seconds," she agreed.

"Newbie," Zuko heard the man mutter as Sokka slunk into the room.

"Wow, they must really hate you here," Sokka whispered as he ducked into the cell.

"Tell me about it," Zuko agreed as Sokka tossed him a pillow. "What are you-"

"Take that!" the boy shouted loudly, smacking the pillow with a fist. "And this!" he growled, smacking the pillow harmlessly again. Sighing, Zuko went along with the plan and grunted with each smack as if in pain. "We have a new plan," the warrior whispered as he continued to deliver blows to the stuffed bag. "But it's gonna need a big distraction. Be in the yard in one hour. I'll try and take care of the rest without you."

"Got it-" Zuko cut off as the guards outside the cell began opening the door.

He dropped the pillow and let out a strangled cry as Sokka suddenly launched himself at the Prince's back with a strangled cry that would have never actually have worked in real combat. Zuko let the boy strangle hold him as the two new guards pulled him from Sokka's grasp. He rubbed his neck painfully as they hauled him from the cell. The former prince should have known better but he had to ask. "What are you doing?" he asked as they steered him through the open area. But they didn't answer. "Where are you taking me?" Again, silence, so he let it go.

But he didn't have to wait long. Moments later, they tossed him head first over a chair, in the same cell he and Katara had been held in right after they'd been captured. He stumbled into the all too familiar furnishing and turned angrily from he landed on the ground. "I didn't do anything wrong," he insisted, beginning to get worried.

"Come on, Zuko," a sweet voice, dark and deep, cut very dryly through his protests. A voice he would know anywhere. "We all know that's a lie."

He felt as if his heart stopped. "Mai..."

Her pale complexion illuminated in the shadows of the room, her eyes equally golden as his, but cold, as if she saw through him completely. Mai leaned against the wall casually, yet Zuko could sense the tension in the air. She was definitely in no mood for pleasantries. This was the maddest he had seen her. Another time, another place he would have reveled to see such an emotion from the girl who kept mostly to herself. Unfortunately, part of him knew the reason for her rage.

And he couldn't blame her. He was neither good with words nor with women. A fact he had to deal with as he had left a half hearted letter to her.

Since the door to the cell was still left wide open Zuko could only have guessed this was a interrogation on Mai's part. A private one.

"I guess I have a lot of explaining to do, huh?" He stated simply before slumping down onto the chair, the metal contraption he had been strapped on not too long ago as the cold, familiar feeling of the chair went up his spine.

"Oh you think?" Mai's words were curt and simple, but the venom in her voice was plain evident.

Zuko winced under the weight of her stare. "...How did you know I was here?" he asked in a weak voice.

"Because I know you so well."

Zuko glanced up at her, surprised at her choice of words, but Mai was making it obvious she didn't want to look at him as she continued to avoid eye contact. "But... how-"

"The Warden's my uncle, you idiot," she sighed, folding her arms across her robes.

Zuko bowed his head, catching his forehead with his palm, realizing in hindsight how stupid his question was.

"The truth is..." The raven haired girl pulled out a familiar letter, _his _letter. "...I guess I don't know you." Mai's tone almost seemed... sad.

Zuko could only feel the guilt build up inside him. She didn't deserve this.

"Where's Azula?" He had to ask.

"She doesn't know I came here," Mai bit out. "I didn't tell her. Maybe I should have."

"Mai, I-"

"All I get is a letter?!" she finally drove in, losing control of her anger. "You could have at least looked me in the eye when you ripped out my heart."

"I didn't mean to," he defended, weakly.

"You didn't mean to?!" Mai sounded almost disgusted. She walked briskly near him as she began to read the contents of the worn letter. "Dear Mai... I'm sorry you had to find out this way. But I'm leaving-"

"Stop..." Zuko wished he had never written that infernal letter. But what was there to say? How could he have made her understand? It was never a simple choice. But now was not the time to dwell upon that. "This isn't about you," he started, hoping she could see that. "This is about the Fire Nation."

"Thanks, Zuko..." A piece of him wanted to smile. Did she really understand? Yet all hope was robbed from him as he saw the fire in her golden eyes. "That makes me feel so much better." She threw the paper right back at him; it hit his head harmlessly but it made his heart ache.

"See, Mai? You wouldn't have understood... it was the only way-"

"Only way?! How could you even say that? You never even tried Zuko!" The guard posted at the door was curious enough to look in at the heated argument. Which was a mistake on his part. "You! Eyes that way!" Mai pointed angrily out the door, and the guard snapped back to his post, more then happy to oblige the Warden's niece.

"Mai," the Prince tried again in the pause, "I never wanted to hurt you..." Zuko tried to express how honest he was being as he got up from the chair. If he was to do this right he needed to see her face. He needed to look into the stern, beautiful eyes he had grown so fond of. "But I have to do this to save my country." The image of Aang the Avatar and his friends was fresh in his mind.

"Save it?!" Mai raged in a tone that implied he had lost his mind. "You're betraying your country!"

But this was one argument Zuko would not back down from. Not even for Mai. "...That's not how I see it," he answered without blinking.

Mai stared at the Fire Prince for a moment before folding her hands once more, clearly irritated.

"Is this how you want to be remembered? Zuko, the betrayer?" She sounded like she was pleading.

_The betrayer_... A moniker he had heard from the beginning. One that never really fazed him anymore. At one time, it had been his bane, but now it was the path he chose. Because of that, like the lashes, it no longer held the same sting. How could he betray his ideals for a madness his great grandfather started over a hundred years ago?

He lifted his head, finally prepared to express his view. "And is genocide what we want our people to be remembered for?"

"Don't change the subject," Mai snapped. "That was different."

"How is that any different Mai? That was murder!"

"That is _war_, Zuko!" Mai surprised herself at how loud her voice was. Slowly she turned away from him. "That's how war always is..." she ended, softly this time.

"...It doesn't change the fact that it was wrong," the Fire Prince countered. "It should never have happened. I realize this now."

Finally the raven haired girl he had loved looked him square in the eye. "...and what would you have done, _Prince_ Zuko?"

She was turning, but he could tell Mai still wasn't utterly convinced. At least not yet. He had to keep trying.

"I would have done whatever my honor demanded of me..." His golden eyes met hers. Mai once said his pride was one of his more enduring qualities. It was time to live up to her expectations. "...And there was no honor in destroying the balance of the world."

For a moment there Zuko swore he saw a softness underneath those cold, golden oculars. But whatever the moment was it was shattered as a guard stumbled in unannounced.

"Ma'am theres a riot going on! I'm here to protect you!" he stated, saluting.

Mai's arm quickly shot out, Zuko could have barely seen her movement. A senbon needle stuck a mere inch away from the guard, as it lodged itself deep into the metal surface. "I don't _need _any protection," she proclaimed coolly, letting the display of her skill speak for itself as a cold sweat appeared upon the surprised guard's face.

Zuko couldn't help but grin, just for a bit. Clearly Mai was as irritated as he was at the interruption. "Believe me," he commented honestly, "She doesn't."

But the man gulped down his fear and walked in slowly, obviously more afraid for his job then his life. "I'm sorry, but I'm under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens."

This was his opening! He knew the clock was ticking. Sokka had given him an hour, and he was already supposed to be with the others now. Which meant, he had to move, whether Mai was convinced or not. With the speed of a firebending master, Zuko quickly shot a jet of flame from his palm, aimed at the guard's feet. The roar of the flames was enough to distract the oaf as he moved to protect his ward, giving the prince the opening he needed to make a break for the door.

Behind him he could hear her shouting as she struggled with the guard. "Get off of me!" But she was quick, even if the action was unexpected, and she threw the poor fellow off to her side, using his own momentum, and started after Zuko without breaking stride.

But she was too late. Zuko had already swung the door closed and was bolting it from the outside when he felt her ram her light weight against it. Only the eye slits remained, and the way she looked at him through it made his heart ache with sorrow. Leaving her for the first time was bad enough. But now he was to do it once more. He looked at those hurt golden eyes of hers and placed a hand up on the only barrier between them.

"Forgive me..." were his last words as they parted.


	15. Chapter 15:Prison Break

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: yey, another long chapter! we may only be doing two a week now instead of three, but the length is twice as long, so it's kinda like four of our original chapters a week, right? XDDD actually, i think this is the fastest trombe's ever done a story...  
_

**Trombe: And that is correct...On the side note...don't you just hate it when fandom shipping becomes a little bit too much? I mean I've seen people say that they won't watch Avatar anymore if Zutara does not happen. That strikes me as...odd and stupid. Theres plenty of things to like to a show for other then the shipping. Especially with Avatar with its superb animation, wonderful characterization, witty dialog, etc. I just don't get those hardcore shippers.**

_artsyelric: trombe! you posted AGAIN without letting me do a final read through! now there's gonna be all these reviewers like "you misspelled" or "you capitalized" and whatnot! grrr... anyway, if you read it and found grammar/spelling mistakes that bothered you, and if you're reading this message, i probably fixed it (i hope). enjoy the (now cleaner) read!_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 15: Prison Break  
**

* * *

Sokka watched Zuko go, worried, but he knew he had only an hour to tell everyone and get his plan enacted. He moved quickly up the stairs to Suki, Katara and the Boulder's floor. As he topped the stairs, he noticed the door to Chi Tzang's cell was open again, with the colossal man no where in sight. Apparently they still hadn't forgiven him for his last escape attempt. Sokka shuddered. _Don't worry. Our plan is solid. Dad's here, and we can do this!_

But no matter how much he told himself these things, his skeptic nature kept searching for a hole in their plan, because if he knew anything, it was that there always was one.

And he could not afford one more mistake.

"We're just gonna have to go for it," he decided, and rapped resolutely on Katara's cell, glancing around before pushing through her door.

"Sokka!" she greeted him. "How's Dad?"

"He's fine," Sokka assured her. "He's worried about you. He wants to get all of us out of here fast."

"Good," she agreed, rubbing her arms as if chilled. "I can't wait to see the back of this place either. And get a good meal," she added hungrily. "So, what's the plan?"

"I'm going to open up all the cells in about an hour," Sokka shared his plan. "Be ready. Get everyone together, and get down to the area where you do morning exercises. The lower level prisoners will be outside doing chores there."

"What?" Katara protested. "But how will we-"

"Sschhh-chh-shhh-hhaa," he brother cut her off, hissing a quirky shush that mean he wanted to finish. He glared at her until she crossed her arms and let him continue. "Thank you," he sniped. "Now, when you get down there it'll be the same time the lower level prisoners are out. I'll meet up with you there, and we'll start a riot."

"A riot?" she asked, astounded.

"Yep," Sokka replied. "In the confusion we make for the gondola, you, me, Dad, Suki, Zuko and the Boulder, got it? We take a hostage so they don't cut the line, and get ourselves out of here while the guards try to stop the riot."

She rubbed her chin. "I guess that would work," she mused. "But what if-"

Suddenly there was a loud clanging at the end of the hall, and sounds of someone yelling loudly. "Just be there," Sokka told his sister. "I'll meet up with you then."

"Sokka!" but he ignored her.

He ran out of the room to find the source of the shouting, leaving a frustrated Katara behind him. Down the hall of prison cells, he saw the cause of the fuss. Somehow the Boulder had broken down his prison cell door and was stomping around, despite the guards clinging tenaciously to his domineering form. "You can't just barge out here!" one of them was shouting, somewhat desperately. "Get back in your cell!"

"The Boulder is hungry!" the big man snorted. "Direct him to your eating hall immediately."

"You'll be released from your cell in three hours for dinner," the guard replied, tugging uselessly on the behemoth's arm. "Now back to your cell!"

But the other guard struggling with the cell door called to his friend. "He broke the lock!"

"He _what?"_ the lead guard demanded.

"The Boulder disputes that accusation," the earthbender cut in. "He would like to note that the door was already broken when he arrived. It would not open, so the Boulder smashed it down."

"It's a _cell,_ you numb-skull! It's not supposed to open from the inside!"

Sokka hid a laugh behind his hand as he stepped into the scene. "Having troubles?" he asked his fellow guards.

"This man broke down his cell door and is going on a rampage!" the man by the door declared.

Sokka ticked his tongue on roof of his mouth. "Well, that sounds horrible. Why don't you go tell the Deputy Chief and I'll handle this big guy."

"All on your own?" the guard asked, doubtfully.

"Don't worry about it," Sokka assured him. "I got it. And this really is something the Deputy Chief should know about right? You wouldn't really being doing your job if you didn't tell him right away..."

Anxious to be away from the frustrating man, the guard agreed. "Done. Come on," he signaled to his friend. "Let's go."

"Good luck!" the other guy called to Sokka as they left.

The Boulder glanced down at the tiny guard before him. "You think you can handle the Boulder, scrawny guard?" he asked, tauntingly. "Don't make him laugh... Show the Boulder where your food and facilities are so that he might appease himself."

Sokka lifted his visor. "Hey Boulder," he grinned. "Long time no see!"

The Boulder blinked, and then squinted at Sokka suspiciously. Then his face broke out in a wide smile. "It's the Chief's boy!" he declared, wrapping Sokka in a bone crunching hug.

"This is so cool," the boy gasped breathlessly as the Boulder squeezed the life out of him, and then set him back on the deck, his helmet lopsided.

"The Boulder is curious," he wondered, "why is his ally dressed as a guard?"

Sokka smiled. "That's all in the plan, my big friend."

"Plan?" the Boulder asked, as Sokka led him back to his room.

"Yep. My friends and I are here to bust out Dad, and you too, so-"

"All right!" the huge man celebrated. "The Boulder has been waiting for his chance to bludgeon some Fire Nation's skulls again for quite a while now! These prisons bore him. Tell the Boulder, what is this stratagem?"

Sokka felt excitement at the Boulder's plan to smash the fire nation, but he knew he had to reel him in. "Listen, just hang out for a little bit. In just under an hour, all the prisoners up here are going to be released. Meet up with my dad, sister and their friends. We're going down to the gondola platform you just came in on, and getting outta here, okay?"

"Query," the Boulder interjected. "How will we get to the gondola? The firebenders will not want us to escape."

"We're going to start... a prison riot!"

"The Boulder likes..." the man admitted, nodding enthusiastically.

"Yeah," Sokka agreed, trying sound cool.

"Understood then," the Boulder surmised. "When the doors open, the Boulder will meet up with the Chief and children and start a riot, then make for the gondola."

"Perfect," Sokka agreed. "Well... your door might not open any more," he added, swinging it brokenly.

The Boulder boomed a huge laugh. "Don't fret, boy, the Boulder will be there."

Sokka nodded affirmatively, and the two waved farewell. Then he moved back up the hall from the Boulder's room to door 21, Suki's cell. Opening the door he slipped in with a grin. He flicked his visor up fashionably so she would see it was him, and she smiled a greeting, returning her foot to the ground. He had interrupted what was obviously her training session. "Sokka," she smiled, as he motioned at her to speak quietly. "What's going on?"

"I don't have much time," he confessed. "And this place is crawling with guards today. If I'm seen with you, they might think something's up," he added,  
keeping a weary eye out the cell door. "I've been to see everyone else already. Anyone watching me would be suspicious." Content that the coast was clear, he turned back to her. "I just talked to my dad," he started the story for a fourth time.

"That's great," she congratulated him.

"Yeah, and we're escaping tonight, on the gondola," he added firmly.

Her face fell. "What?"

"My dad and I came up with the plan together," he explained excitedly. Zuko had been rushed out, and Katara was too likely to argue, plus the Boulder was never the master strategist, so presenting his plan to Suki finally had Sokka proud of his father and his idea. He grasped her shoulders gently as he continued. "We're gonna commandeer the gondola, and we'll take a hostage with us so they won't cut the line."

She shook her head, stepping out of his reach. "We'll never make it onto the gondola. There's too many guards."

"My dad already thought of that," Sokka counted. "He said we'll need a distraction. That's why we're going to start a prison riot!" he declared enthusiastically. "In just under an hour here, the lower level prisoners will be out and about, and they'll create a huge fuss if they so much as hear the word fight."

Suki twisted her face as she stared at her boyfriend. "Okay," she humored him, though he could tell she was at least slightly impressed. "Let's say by some miracle this all works, and we make it on the gondola. The Warden will still just cut the lines," she pointed out, "even if we have a captive."

Sokka smiled, ready to finally reveal the true genius of the plan. "Not if the Warden _is _the captive."

Suki blinked at him. _Oh yeah, _he thought to himself, _she totally digs it..._

But before either of them could speak, a sound outside the cell door interrupted, again. Sokka leaned towards the window to look, and found even more guards littering the hall. He wonder dimly how big of a scene the Boulder had actually caused, but he turned back to Suki resolutely. "I have to go," he whispered, and before he knew what had hit him, she had thrown herself into his arms.

"Be careful," she pleaded.

"Don't worry," he assured her, trying to sound more confident than he felt. "I'll find you before we start the riot. Meet everyone outside as soon as I get the cell doors open and head for the cement open area. I'll be there. And then we can get out of here," he added, patting her back.

She sniffed a bit and nodded. "I'll be waiting," she grinned, before he ducked out of the cell.

Sokka gave a little sigh as he left his girlfriend, the door closing behind him, and then started down the hall away from where he'd seen the guards. But his posture snapped straight in surprise as one of them spotted him and barked out a, "hey you!"

"The Warden wants to see you," the second informed him, crossing his arms in a book-no-nonsense manner.

"Why?" Sokka asked simply.

"I don't know, I didn't ask," the male replied.

"Maybe... I could schedule another time with him?" Sokka suggested, realizing he was running out of time to get the prison cells open. "How's tomorrow?" he offered off-handedly, starting down the hall again, and waving at the guards he was leaving.

But two more guards were walking up the hall towards him and grabbed him by the arms, turning him roughly back towards the original speaker. "He wants to see you," the big man repeated. "Now."

"Well," Sokka sighed, as they marched him off. "I don't seem to have much choice..."

They lead him out to the open area before the entrance to the gondola, where his father had been just hours before. The Warden was back with his two person guards, pacing, and a line of prison guards were before him. "Put him in the line up," the Warden directed, and Sokka was pushed towards the line of guards, his helmet taken.

He stumbled into the last guard, and the man pushed him off with a grunt. _Okay, this is bad, _Sokka realized. _They must know something's up. Pretty soon someone's gonna realize I'm darker than all the other guys, that my eyes are blue, or that I'm too young to be a guard here... _He tried to slink behind the guard next to him so that he was less visible, but the man glowered at him, and Sokka was forced to take his place back.

"One of you," the Warden began, "is an impostor who thought he could fool me." He surveyed the guards before him, letting his words sink in. Sokka's heart was racing. _We are sooo done for! _"But now, that person is going to be in a lot of trouble." Chi Tzang was brought around from behind the Warden, two guards escorting the burly man,

_Oh yeah, _Sokka panicked. _I am dead! Ah!_

"Who is it?" the Warden asked.

Sokka could feel his teeth chattering and his legs shaking. He was afraid he'd pass out, his knees were locked so tight to keep him upright. Chi Tzang's eyes passed right over him, and he could tell the man had been through a lot by the defeated way he stood. _This is it..._

"That's him Warden," the firebender pronounced, and Sokka squeezed his eyes shut before he realized that Chi Tzang was no where near him. Instead, he was down the line a ways, pointing at an entirely different guard. "He's the impostor."

"What?" the accused man barked in disbelief. "I am not!" the man cried as the Warden turned and left.

He wasn't the only one surprised. Sokka's jaw dropped. Chi Tzang knew exactly who he was, so why had he pointed at someone else? Sokka peered down the line, intently. Suddenly he recognized the man. It was the wide fellow who he and Zuko had seen on their first day as guards, the jerk who had picked on Chi Tzang and thrown him in the cooler unjustly. Sokka felt a smile creeping up his face. _Haha, way to go, big guy! _he applauded silently. _Shows him what goes around comes around. _

Chi Tzang held up his hands peaceably as the guard grabbed his shirt. "He's lying!" the man insisted, but no one listened to him. Two guards grabbed him and started dragging him off. "He's a liar!"

Chi Tzang smiled and Sokka breathed a huge sigh of relief as the falsely accused guard was pulled away into the Warden's tower. "Someone take this man back to his cell," one of the guards commanded, and Chi Tzang was escorted out, completely ignoring Sokka.

The boy glanced down at the cement area below them. His eyes widened. "Oh no," he realized. "The prisoners are already out!"

It was true. His hour was up. The lower level prisoners were on their outside time in the open area. It was time to get the doors open, and it needed to be fast.

The disguised warrior darted away from the gondola loading area and made for where the control box was. All the doors were opened automatically by levers in the far end of the prison hall. He was praying the whole time for everything to work, and urging himself to move faster, and not look suspicious. The result was he did neither well. As he shuffled along the halls, nerves began to set in. There were still way too many guards in the hall.

Finally he stopped and asked a passing prison guard what was happening. "Why all the security?" he asked the woman curiously.

"What rock have you been under?" she laughed mockingly. "We're expecting a visit from the Princess any time now."

"Azula?" he heard himself whisper.

"What other princess would I mean?" the lady confirmed. "She's coming for her brother, and that waterbending girl. But I guess we'll be glad to see the back of them, the trouble makers." She laughed, and glanced at Sokka, who was almost as pale as she was. "Right?" she hissed when he didn't respond.

"Yeah, right," he forced a weak laugh. "Trouble makers..."

As soon as she turned away, he moved down the hall at a run, no longer caring who saw him.

He stopped in front of the command station and caught his breath. When his breathing had evened out and he felt calmer, he stepped into the room, putting on his best, self-important face. "Hey," he greeted the man standing before the control panel. "I just got orders. Let the prisoners into the yard," he gestured.

"But," the man disputed "we're in the middle of a lock down. The Princess is coming - _and _the lower level prisoners are out right now, in the outer yard."

"Oh, okay," Sokka drawled, stopping the man with a raised hand before turning exasperatedly towards the door. "I'll just go tell the Warden you said that. I'm sure he'll be glad to hear about you undermining his authority," he added as the man raised his visor, doubt playing across his face. "What's your name again?" Sokka asked, turning back a last time before leaving.

"Wait!" the man finally broke as Sokka lifted his own helm to glance at him. "Don't tell the Warden. I'm just... a little confused."

"Hey," Sokka shrugged, "I'm confused too. But the Warden's in a bad mood and... irrational," he improvised. "So, if you ask me, it's best not to question it, and just do what he says," he concluded, wrapping an arm around the guard in a buddy like manner and turning him towards the control panel encouragingly.

"Yeah," the man finally agreed. "You're right." He leaned towards the metal pipes they used to communicate across the prison. "We're letting them out," he reported, setting the bell to ringing as he began downing the levels that opened the upper prisoner's cell doors.

Sokka glanced out the window, pleased, as the prisoners meandered into the metal roll call area, bewildered. _This'll work, _he assured himself. _The plan will work and we'll be across the gondola before Azula has a chance at us. It has to._

* * *

Katara burst out of her cell and turned to see Suki calmly leaving hers. The girl looked up at her friend. "There you are," she smiled. "You know what to do?" Katara nodded. "Then, let's go!"

They passed a confused Chi Tzang who was scratching his head. "They just put me back in here," he was muttering. "Girls! It's not roll call yet, is it?" he asked.

Katara shook her head. "We're just as confused as you," Suki spoke up quickly before steering Katara past him.

"Why didn't you tell him we're-"

"Escaping?" Suki finished her sentence. "Don't you think the less people who know, the better chance we have of actually _escaping _this time?"

"Well," Katara started to protest, but her rebuke was once again cut short as two giant arms wrapped around her, lifting her off the ground.

She let out a very unladylike squeal in shock before she realized who it was. "The Boulder is pleased to see his little waterbending friend again!"

"Really, Boulder," she gasped. "I can't breath."

"Where is the Blind Bandit?" he asked. "The Boulder was led to believe you traveled together?"

"She's with the avatar right now," Katara answered.

"No time for that," Suki interrupted politely. "Did Sokka fill you in?"

The Boulder nodded. "We meet up in the outer open area the Boulder saw while interring the prison."

"Well, don't tell everyone," Suki grinned. "Let's go."

The stairs creaked ominously as the huge earthbender followed the two girls down them, and Katara was actually afraid they might crack off the structure and fall. Fortunately, they held, and the girls made their way down to the ground floor. They moved away from the other confused prisoners and down the metal hallways to the open area outside. The wall where she and Zuko had fallen loomed ominously to her left again, and she wondered if it was a good sign or a bad that she had thought of it again right now. Suki had brought them down the hall they used in morning exercises, so the wall was far up above the cement walk ways where the guards paced, watching them, but it was clear in Katara's mind.

They stepped out of the shadows of the doorway and into the light, and Katara was immediately surrounded by the low level prisoners. The space was crowded, and the rowdy prisoners were milling around. Katara was suddenly glad the Boulder was with them, and when Suki reached back and took her hand, the waterbender knew her friend felt the same. A few of the lower level prisoners eyes either the girls, or their strange party, curiously, but when the Boulder fixed them with a glare, they immediately back off. One who stayed and leered too long was allotted a single warning, "the Boulder does not like how you stare at him, puny prisoner," and then was sent stumbling away as the ground roiled under his feet from a stomp the Boulder had directed his way in the confusion.

"There," Suki declared, pointing to Sokka's waving, armored hand as she spotted him over by edge of the yard.

Katara started to watch her brother, but then her eyes noticed the man next to him. "Dad," she whispered, as Suki dragged her onward.

And then, for the second time in the last few minutes, she was enveloped in a strong hug. "Katara," Hakoda smiled, pulling his daughter towards him. "I was so worried! Are you all right?" he asked, holding her back so he could see her.

She realized a few tears were actually on her cheeks and she quickly shook them away. "I'm fine, Dad," she reassured him. "Just... happy to see you."

He smiled and hugged her again, and she realized she really had missed him. In just the short time they'd spent with him on the captured ship and again in the preparation and invasion of the Fire Nation, she had become used to having him around again, and when he was gone she honestly missed his presence. A father's place was with his family, and Hakoda's was with his bumbling son and loving daughter.

"Sorry to break this up," Sokka interjected, "but has anyone seen Zuko?"

Katara pulled away from her father with a frown as everyone shook their heads. Well, the Boulder scratched his, obviously not aware of the fire prince's participation in this mission, but everyone else seemed not to have seen him.

"We can always try this again another day," Hakoda offered. "We don't have the run the very minute I set foot in this place."

But Sokka shook his head. "No, we can't." All eyes turned to him. "Azula's on her way."

Suki's eyes widened in fear as Sokka pronounced that. "Then we have to go," she determined. "Now."

"But what about Zuko?" Katara protested.

"What about him?" Suki asked. "He's not here! Why should we wait for the man who burned my village down?"

"The Boulder is confused," the big man finally stated. "Is this Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation an ally of ours? Because the Boulder thought the royal family were our enemies?"

"Zuko's different," Sokka crisply updated the Boulder. "He's good now." He looked back at his girl friend. "We have to wait for him."

"But if Azula is here..." she shivered and then dropped quiet, obviously reliving Azula's last horrifying trip to see her.

Sokka pulled her to his chest. "It's okay. She won't get us this time," he promised. "I won't let her."

Suki nodded against him, and Hakoda tugged at his daughter's sleeve. "I think I'm out of the loop," he admitted. "Who is this?"

Katara laughed, suddenly realizing that their father didn't know Sokka had a girlfriend. "Sokka, you oaf," she grinned, punching him in the arm. "You didn't tell Dad about Suki?"

"Ow!" he brother flinched, his girlfriend leaving his grasp. "I did so!"

"Suki! The Kyoshi warrior?" Hakoda realized, as he reached out to take her hand. "I _have _heard about you then. Just not that you were dating my son," he added, with a sideways glance at Sokka. The boy made a stupid sound as he rubbed his sore arm. Hakoda turned back to the girl before him with a smile. "He is a lucky man."

Suki blushed, but Sokka cut in. "Okay, enough of that! He stepped solidly between his father and his girlfriend. "We have a plan. This is it!" he fisted the air. "We have to start a riot!"

"Okay," Suki agreed, her hands on her hips. "But how do we do that, smart guy?"

"I'll show you," Hakoda replied, starting towards a lower level prisoner not too far from them.

When he reached the man, he gave him a huge push, shoving him into the friends he was talking to. The man grunted and turned, a huge scar sliced over his eye. "Hey! What'cha do that for?" he almost whined. "That hurt my feelings."

It was certainly a response no one expected.

Katara watched her father lift his hands in confusion. "Aren't you mad at me?" he asked.

"Ah... well, normally I would be," the man agreed, shrugging a thick, tattooed arm. "But, I've been learning to control my anger," he concluded.

The group stared at him in shock.

"This isn't working," Sokka surrendered.

"Hey you!" a voice barked suddenly, and Katara saw her brother pale as a large hand wrapped around his shoulder. "You're lucky I didn't rat you out," Chi Tzang continued. "But my generosity comes with a price."

"How'd you find us?" Sokka wondered.

"Followed your sister and your girl," the man nodded. "Who's the big fellow?"

"The Boulder," he answered for himself, reaching out to shake Chi Tzang's hand. "And you are?"

"Smaller than you..." Chi Tzang marveled.

"This is Chi Tzang," Sokka supplied. "And he still hasn't said what he's doing here."

"I know you're planning another escape attempt," he explained. "And I want in."

"Sorry," Sokka refused. "We don't have any room for mistakes this time."

But Katara grabbed his shoulder, and turned him around. She had seen what he hadn't. "Sokka, look," she whispered.

At least twenty prisoners were behind Chi Tzang, all from the upper cells. Wei and the Terra Team, and Gouliang who had helped Zuko, and Chi Tzang's friends, Phong and Chinsei, even Chey, and some earthbenders Katara didn't know. Towards the back, she noticed the big fire nation man she had addressed in her speech. He smiled sheepishly at her when she did. "Where did you all come from?" she wondered.

"We followed you," Gouliang supplied.

"Yeah," Wei agreed. "We're with you, Katara. Take us with you."

Katara had never felt so proud. As the men and women of so many opposing races present themselves before her, she was amazed. Every single face she looked in had pride, and strength. How could she leave them?

"No," Sokka denied.

"What?" she asked, having not spoken.

"I can see what you're thinking, Katara," he fumed. "And you can just stop thinking it! We can't take the entire prison with us! This is ridiculous."

"I don't care," Katara shot back. "We have to try!"

"Azula is coming here!" Sokka protested. "She could be here any time, for you! Do you want her to catch you, Katara? Because if this fails, she will. She'll get you, and Dad, and Suki and Zuko! Is that what you want?"

"We're not leaving them." Her face was set. "I will never-"

"-ever abandon people who need me," Sokka deflated. "Yeah yeah yeah." He glanced at his Dad. "What do you think?"

"I don't think it makes a difference at all," Hakoda replied. "As long as we all fit on one gondola, we'll be good. But we're not coming back or waiting for people. If they want their shot, they'll have to take it."

"Right," Sokka nodded. "Listen, if you want to come with us, you'll just have to trust us." He turned and pointed up the gondola loading dock. "Make your way up there and do whatever it takes to secure the gondola. We all have to be on it, post haste!"

"But they'll see us coming a mile away," Wei protested.

"Are you even _trying _to escape?" Chi Tzang mocked. "Your last plan was so much better."

"Actually," Sokka bit back, "we are trying to escape right now. But, we need a riot, to hide us. You wouldn't happen to know how to start one, would you?" he asked, pointing at Chi Tzang.

The man's face relaxed as he realized there really was a plan, and he smiled off-handedly. "A prison riot? Please." He pushed through Sokka and marched past Hakoda, grabbing the scared man's friend by the neck of his shirt. When he was close enough to the middle that the low level prisoners could clearly hear him, he hefted the struggling man over his head and bounced him. "Hey!" he shouted, simply. "Riot!"

"Forget about controlling my anger," the first man barked. "Let's riot!"

Immediately, all hell broke loose. Loud shouting came from the prisoners, and a huge cloud of dust and fireballs began rising. The guards on the walkways above them began panicking and pointing, but the prisoners were already wild, and not in a mood to be stopped. Katara noticed the Warden charge out onto the platform above them, yelling angry commands.

"Impressive," Hakoda deduced.

"Okay," Sokka told everyone. "Anyone who wants to come, make your way as inconspicuously as possible to the loading zone for the gondola and wait for us. Don't make them suspicious though, or they'll draw the bridge up and we won't be able to get on. Whatever else happens, wait for us, and don't let them raise the bridge."

"Got it," Wei and the rest nodded, before dispersing into the rioting crowd and disappearing among the prisoners.

"Okay," Sokka nodded. "Time to do our part." He glanced around for somewhere safe, and then motioned them over into the corner of the hallway which led to the lower level prisons.

Katara noticed Chi Tzang stayed with them as she, Sokka, her father, Suki and the Boulder made for the cover of the yard's entrance. "Why didn't you tell them all of the plan?" she asked her brother.

"Too risky," he replied. "Besides, we can't start yet. Zuko's still not here."

"What's taking him?" Katara fretted.

Sokka peered back into the yard as everyone ducked in the shadows, rubbing his hands together anxiously. "Right before I came to tell you guys about the plan, some guards came for Zuko and took him off." Katara glanced up at her brother. "Now, I'm starting to get worried." He peered cautiously out of the hall and into the mass of lower level prisoners in the cement yard. "He should be here..."

Suddenly there was a loud sound behind them, and Katara spun quickly. A guard was flipped into the hallway behind them with a burst of fire, and the prince landed atop him, knocking him out. "Miss me?" he asked, standing.

Somehow Katara couldn't help but grin.

_Idiot. Dramatic entrances don't suit you._ But she held her tongue, moving to meet him instead. But before she had a chance, "Zuko!" Sokka slapped the Prince on the back in a friendly gesture, causing an evidently pain to the firebender.

"O-ow," Zuko flinched, moving away from him. "That's... still kind of tender," he growled.

"Sorry," Sokka noted, apologetically.

"What took you?" Katara found her voice, trying to hide her worried tone.

His head hung. "I've got some bad news. Mai's here." Zuko looked back up at them, his eyes serious. "And where she is, you can bet Azula won't be far behind."

"We know," Sokka nodded, and Zuko stared in surprise. "The whole prison is buzzing about it."

"What do we do?" Zuko asked.

"Get out," Sokka replied. "Now." Zuko nodded.

Suddenly the Boulder stepped in, placing a big hand on Zuko's head and turning the startled prince towards himself, then around in a big circle, Zuko being guided by the huge fingers on his head. "What are you doing?" he demanded, pushing the Boulders hand off with both of his.

"The Boulder was expecting someone... different," he admitted, glancing at Zuko's extremely bland prison clothes and messy hair.

"Who is this guy?" Zuko puzzled, looking at Katara.

"We told you," The waterbender girl giggled. "The Boulder!"

But Sokka's jaw had dropped. "Who is he?" the warrior gaped. "Who is he? Only one of the greatest earthbenders ever! He's one of the fighters at Earth Rumble!"

"Which is..."

"Like... the coolest thing in the world!" Sokka raged. "He took second place in Earth Rumble 6!"

"So... he lost?" Zuko pointed out.

"The Blind Bandit is an admirable foe," the Boulder cut in.

"Who's the Blind-" but Zuko's question was cut short.

"Is now really the time?" Hakoda interrupted. "All these pleasantries can come later," he pointed out.

"You're Chief Hakoda," Zuko greeted the older warrior, bowing in a traditional fashion. "It's an honor to meet you, uh... sir. I've heard a lot."

"As have I," Hakoda smiled, though Katara cold tell he was a bit surprised to have the son of the Fire Lord bowing in respect to him. In a prison of all places. Still, his face stayed calm as he directed his children back towards the matter at hand. "Formalities aside, how about that escape plan?"

"Well, we're all here," Sokka counted. "Now all we need to do is grab the Warden and get to the gondola," he surmised, pointing up to where the Warden was still ranting on the walkways above the yard.

"And, how do we do that?" Zuko questioned dryly.

"I'm... not sure." Sokka gave one of his stupidest faces.

"Sokka!" Katara moaned.

"Err!" Zuko echoed her. "I thought you thought this through."

"I thought you told me it was okay not to think things through!" Sokka countered desperately, his voice extraordinarily high.

"Maybe not everything," Zuko defined, banging his hand on his forehead at Sokka's incompetence. "But this is kind of important!"

"Hey, ah, fellows," Chi Tzang interrupted, "I think your girlfriend's taking care of it."

"Wow," Hakoda marveled. "Look at her go."

The warrior of Kyoshi was leaping on top of the rioting crowd, running on top of them as she dashed through the chaos. With one final push she jumped straight up, climbing the metal surface with uncanny agility. Suki's own momentum was waning and as she reached the peak of her run and pushed off one final time, falling into a swan dive.

Sokka gasped as her legs caught the railings and she used the momentum of her body to flip her over, catching the top with her hands. A guard came charging down blindly, an action Suki was more then ready for as she flipped over head, completely avoiding the fire blast he'd conjured. She landed in the most ideal position in a fight, behind her opponent. He never even saw her punches coming before succumbing to unconsciousness.

Quickly spotting a couple more prison guards behind her Suki charged after them, ducking and spinning under one's fire blast before destroying his root by knocking his one solid foot off the ground. The Kyoshi warrior didn't even bat an eyelash as she delivered his downfall, already prepared to face her next foe. Again she avoided a deftly intense fireball. But, still being one level below the Warden, with more guard on the way, she decided not to waste any more time. Instead of fighting, she pounced on the railing again and shot herself up, climbing one more story up to face the Warden.

Spotting her prey, Suki barely payed attention to the last guard as she slid under him, her hands moving like a bird's talons, catching the Warden unprepared.

"You wouldn't dare," the Warden hissed as Suki caught his fist, her own a mere second from being released.

She smiled, and spun him, wrapping his belt around his wrists in almost one fluid movement, and pulling his headpiece a complete revolution before dropping it securely over his mouth. "Sorry, Warden," she mocked, as she pulled the knot tight. "You're my prisoner now."

Katara slid to a weary stop as the boys caught up behind her, Chi Tzang, Sokka, the Boulder, and even Zuko and Hakoda breathing hard from the climb.

Suki smiled, her breathing normal. "We've got the Warden," she reported, as she slammed him into the wall. "Now let's get outta here!" Her blue eyes blazed.

"The Boulder," the big man gasped, "is impressed."

"Yeah," Hakoda acknowledged, "that's some girl."

"Tell me about it," Sokka wheezed.

Katara held in a laugh, but just barely, and her father glanced at her as she smiled. _Boys, _she thought to herself.

"What's that?" Zuko asked, pointing down at the gondola loading zone.

"Oh no," Sokka groaned. "They're raising the bridge... See Katara!" he spun on his sister. "I told you sending half the prison over there was a bad idea!"

"What?" Zuko demanded. "Half the prison?"

"Chi Tzang's not the only one who followed us," Katara informed him. "There were a lot of other prisoners who we inspired. They wanted to come along."

"And you just let them?" Zuko demanded.

"I thought you said you believed in me!" Katara argued, poking him in the chest.

"Both of you are crazy!" the Fire Prince accused the siblings.

"Guys," Suki called, grabbing the Warden. "Shouldn't we get a move on?"

"Right," Hakoda agreed. "It looks like they're having troubled getting the bridge up. See how it's stuttering, back and forth like that? And there's fire bolts all around. Your friends must be fighting," he added to Katara.

"Then we should get down there," the Boulder agreed. "The Boulder has been waiting for a good fight."

But Katara ran towards the wall instead. "Hold on a second," she told them.

She leaned over the wall, and bent some of the lake water. Then she moved it into the small hole where they'd hidden their weapons and then froze it, struggling to bend something so far away. Then she pulled the frozen water up to them, sweat covering her forehead. Finally, she returned it to a liquid state, and the boy's swords dropped out to clang on the deck. Sighing, she brought the last of the water up, coating her arms with it so she could carry it with her.

"Katara," Sokka grinned, "you so rock."

"I know," she smiled back playfully as he strapped his sword on. "Arm up! And let's go," she nodded.

Zuko passed his Dao swords off to Hakoda who raised an eyebrow. "Can you use them?" he asked. "I can bend."

"I'm not really a dual blades kind of guy, but I'll make do," the veteran warrior smirked as he accepted the weapons, whirling a blade in one hand while testing the balance of the other.

Zuko nodded, impressed.

Suki pushed the Warden ahead of them and the group headed for the docks.

As they climbed the final, shorter set of stairs to the loading dock, Katara was amazed at what she saw. There was a stone bridge connecting the walkway above the prisoner's yard to the loading dock where the gondola's were, which was also where the Warden's tower was. Clearly it could be pulled up in case of emergency. Which is exactly what the guards on the far side were attempting to do. They were tugging frantically on large gears, pushing against the giant handle, as they attempted to wind up the long cable attached to the end of the bridge, thus raising it. But the bridge was stuck half way up, and fighting back, as if too heavy for the guards struggling against it. And now Katara realized why. On the platform on the prison side of the bridge stood her tiny army of prisoners, and every earthbender among them was sweating as they pulled at the stone bridge, attempting to earthbend it back down into place. It had become a huge tug of war match between the frustrated soldiers and the desperate benders.

At the same time, firebenders from the guard's side were shooting flaming blasts across at the struggling earthbenders, attempting to distract or injure them. The firebenders on the prisoners side were actually blocking for the earthbenders, moving frantically to intercept the myriad of flames coming at them, sweat pouring down their faces as they attempted to defend their sudden allies and only chance at escape.

"Boulder!" Hakoda called. "Get us that bridge!"

"The Boulder is on it!" the man huffed, letting the rest of his group pass him.

Using earthbending, he buried his feet in the stone foundation, and, with a great breath that popped the veins out of his neck, he lifted his hands, and began tugging downward on the air. Across the bridge, soldiers spotted him and began to shoot blasts towards him. Chi Tzang slid to a stop too, and began deflecting the blasts. The two giant men took on the guards like nothing, and the Boulder gave a huge cry, before the bridge gave a massive drop towards the platform, stopping just barely above it.

"What happened?" Katara asked loudly as Sokka screamed, "pull!" at his hero and the rest of the earthbenders.

"Someone betrayed us," Wei replied, his voice strained as he bent the earth bridge. "When we got here, they ran across the bridge and told the guards to draw it up."

"What?" she cried. "Who?"

"Chinsei," Phong declared, her voice cold.

"What?" Chi Tzang gasped. "That can't be..."

"It is," she replied, her voice fiery.

"That's okay," Sokka gasped, rubbing his head. "Just get the bridge down here. We can still do this."

"How? I don't have any of my explosives on me," Chey asked, milling about with nothing to do and obviously growing anxious.

Suki pulled the Warden forward. "With him."

"Your bridge... is.. HERE!" the Boulder roared as the bridge slammed home.

Guards charged up it, fire at their fingertips, but Zuko and Katara had been waiting, darting across the bridge. Zuko deterred two blasts, and he heard another fizzle out in Katara's water. "Back off," he commanded, as they guards hesitated at facing the waterbender and Fire Prince. "We've got the Warden."

Their eyes widened as Suki pushed forward, and they backed off. Chi Tzang stepped onto the bridge, his eyes angry, the Boulder behind him. "Where's Chinsei?" he asked, his voice hard, Phong glowering at his side.

"It doesn't matter," Katara hissed. "Leaving him will be his just reward."

Chi Tzang nodded, and grabbed the Warden, throwing him disrespectfully over a shoulder.

"Let's go," Zuko commanded, moving cautiously through the surrendered guards, Katara sticking close to his side.

For once, they were on the same wavelength. Neither of them trusted the firebender guards to stay peaceful for long. But as soon as they crossed the bridge, a stream of prisoners charged through behind them, and Zuko stopped at the end of the bridge, watching the guards as they all passed, ready to block another attack. Katara hesitated only a second before staying beside him, keeping her watery arms ready for any attack.

Suki threw open the gondola door. "Everyone in," she called, as the twenty or so odd people loaded on.

When everyone was safely aboard, the two benders followed. "Get on," Zuko shouted, reaching for the lever that would start the gondola.

"What about you?" Katara asked frantically, eyeing the guards.

"I'll be there."

She nodded, and darted into the gondola. But the minute she turned her back, the guards started running down the bridge, blasting towards Zuko. She turned and pushed her way through the prisoners to stare out the window as Zuko yanked hard on the lever. It budged, and the gondola began moving. But Zuko didn't leave. Instead, he began kicking the metal lever. "What are you doing?" she shouted. "Get on!"

But Zuko ignored her, slamming two more well aimed kicks at the metal device until the handle finally snapped off. "Zuko!" Sokka shouted, as the gondola left the platform, no more ground beneath them.

Zuko glanced up, and then ran for the edge, launching himself off it. Sokka held out a hand, and Zuko dove towards it, fireballs around him. Katara knocked a particularly well aimed blast away from the prince, stretching her water out across the gaping expanse. As she did, Zuko stretched out his hand for her brother's. She felt her heart race as he moved out of her line of sight. _Did he make it?_

But then Sokka's body tipped, and he swung, Zuko clearly in his grasps. "Hang on," he called, his body half out the window.

The Boulder leaned over the water tribe boy and grabbed Zuko by the scruff of his neck, lifting the fire prince into the gondola with little effort. "The Boulder would like to ask you to keep your hands and arms inside the gondola," he told the boys, and Sokka began laughing hysterically.

"We made it," her brother gasped. "I can't believe it!" he found Suki and hugged her. "We made it!"

"Yeah," the girl smiled. "We're on our way."

"Optimistic yet?" Katara teased her brother.

"I'm considering it," he replied skeptically. "What were you doing?" he asked Zuko.

"I'm making it so they can't stop us," he replied, his tone serious in contrast to her brother's bout of laughter. "What good would it do us to be up here if they just stopped the cable pull and reversed it?"

"Oh," Sokka admitted. "Way to think ahead."

"Wait!" Hakoda called from the window. "Who's that?"

"No..." Zuko gasped a he reached the window. "That's a problem." Katara felt a lump in her throat drop as she looked down at the platform they just left.

There was no mistaking those intense gold eyes. It was the piercing gaze of a monster.

"Azula!"

* * *

The Western Air temple was strangely quiet. No angry arguments from waterbenders and firebenders, no sarcastic comments. No... nothing. Just the calming presence of the breeze through the mountain side.

Aang couldn't have been more bored then at that very moment.

"...They sure are taking their time hunting," Aang commented nonchalantly, as he lay down, his eyes staring at the vast sky above.

"...They sure are." Haru sighed as he juggled three small stone pieces in the air, an easy feat for an earthbender.

"I'm bored..." The Duke chimed in.

"...We've ran out of things to explore..." Teo agreed, fingering his scraped elbow. "Plus some waterbending healing would be nice. I really shouldn't have tried that trick blind. Katara always did say flying in the dark was a bad idea."

"WILL SOMEBODY SAY SOMETHING FUNNY?!" a very livid Toph shouted from her stone tent.

Aang couldn't help but sigh in mutual agreement. Yep... things were definitely turning for the worse.


	16. Chapter 16:Break Free

Author's note:

**Trombe: This one took so long to write. I had so much trouble trying to get all of this come together. Anyway to all our reviewers, you guys rock. I'm tempted to reward you guys with a one-shot of your choice. Tempted.**

_arstyelric: omg! that's rad trombe! by the way guys, he give out props very rarely, and rewards even less often! take what you can get! XDD: my comment here is long, but please read it so I don't come home to like... a million e-mails! trombe will have to answer them, not me, but then he'll be grumpy, and we all know where that leads TT...TT_

_so basically, this chapter kind of concludes the boiling rock part of the story - but we are by no means done! any of you thinking "well, gee, this story hasn't progressed that far into zutara" you are exactly right! we thought the only way to make the story between these two flow right was to give them all the time they needed for their relationship to grow. as you will see in this chapter, this has been a lot of build up, with some juicy scenes. we have much more... passionate and romantic scenarios to come._

_here's your first hint: next chapter we would like to address the fact that, despite the reports of numerous fanfiction authors (many of whom we love despite their delusion), zuko is not actually a good hunter. we saw this plenty in the beginning of season two. in fact, no matter how you spin it, prince or not, zuko is from the country of technology. in avatar, the fire nation builds and organizes, they don't hunt. unlike the earth based nation, who live very at home with nature and their surroundings, whether they are swamp or tundra. so, in this upcoming episode, hakoda and sokka will take zuko hunting for some little 'man on man' time, as a nice interlude to our action packed chapters._

_NOW THE IMPORTANT PART: to prepare him for writing this fun little trip, artsyelric (that's me!) and her father will be stealing trombe for a whole ten days and dragging him up the coast to yosemite for a nice family vacation! huzzah! hopefully he will be inspired (and me too :D). as long as we have batteries on our laptops or any way to recharge them, we will continue to write while we're there. but, unfortunately, internet is as null and void as the non-existent reception our cell phones crave, so you won't get another post until after july 6th (when we return to san diego) but maybe, if you're lucky, we'll have two chapters that day. maybe. or maybe, a chapter and that one shot trombe's trying to bribe you with XDDD_

_fanbase, you really do rock! we worked very hard to end the boiling rock part before leaving, and to end it well so everyone would be happy. please don't abandon us in our break, since we gave you a temporary stopping point! we have so much in mind for this story, and i think it will be truly beautiful, growing right alongside the cannon series. please continue to stick with us! i feel like you reviewers hold us to the story, and the story holds trombe and i together despite my move to los angeles, so thank you so much for reading! we will see you again in a few short days!_

**Trombe: Oh happy days.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 16: Break Free**

* * *

"Who is it?" Hakoda repeated, glancing at his daughter's worried face.

"It's my sister and her friend," Zuko replied gruffly.

Azula was the last person Zuko had wanted to see. But the once heir apparent to the fire throne was becoming used to the idea that whatever he did, his sister was not far behind in getting in the way. So the less he wanted to see her, the more often she tended to show up. The gondola swayed as peopled moved over to the edge so the escapees could see the newly appeared threat. They watched in shock as Ty Lee launched herself into the air with the grace of the acrobat she was, and began running smoothly up the cable that was moving the gondola. She charged up the thin cable as if it were a wide walkway, catching up quickly with the gondola.

"Wow," the Boulder gaped.

"She's a tightrope walker in the circus," Zuko revealed.

"No way," Sokka marveled. "Actually, I think I can see that..."

"Now is not the time!" Suki cut in. "Look!"

Azula ripped the handcuffs off a guard's belt and ran to the edge of the platform. Gripping them solidly, she jumped, shooting the blue fire she was known for backwards out of her hands, launching herself up high enough to clip the cuffs around the bottom wire. As Ty Lee ran over the top one, Azula redirected the blast from her left hand, and the handcuff began sliding up the cable, propelled by her flames.

"Double wow," Hakoda muttered in echo of the Boulder.

"Yeah," the prince agreed, frowning at his sister. "She's just a freak."

But Zuko's mood turned serious again as Suki faced down the circus performer. "This is a rematch I've been waiting for," she announced.

"Me too," Zuko agreed, his golden eyes locking on his sister.

"Hey I can fight too-" Katara quickly cut her sentence when the shiny eyes of the prince fell on her.

"This is my battle," he stated, as if that it would explain it all to the stubborn girl.

"You think you can fight in your condition?" she demanded.

Sokka waved a hand useless towards their blossoming argument. "Uh guys..."

But the two opposing benders were already in mid-swing. "I think I know my own limits, Katara!" Zuko was insisting.

Her eyes flashed as she tossed her hair over her shoulder. "If you think for one second I'm just going to-"

"THEY'RE COMING!" Sokka interrupted with a hasty shout.

"Katara," Hakoda insisted, grabbing his daughter. "Two waves is a more logical attack pattern. Let your brother and friends take the first attack, and if they don't hold them, then you, the Boulder and I will step in." He glanced around at the weary prisoners. "There's people here you want to protect, right?"

Katara nodded, but she didn't look pleased. Suki climbed up on the window of the gondola. "We need room," she stated, motioning to Zuko and Sokka.

"Right," her boyfriend agreed, moving towards an edge.

Zuko decided he didn't have the time to argue with the waterbending master. He glanced at Suki as she sprang up the edge, twisting herself up onto the gondola roof. Taking her lead, he hauled himself out of the window after the girl, climbing up on top gondola. As he climbed up, he glanced around. There was room to move without bumping the other prisoners up here, and Azula and Ty Lee would have to land there first. Suki had preceded him, and she was already springing lithely onto the gondola roof.

Moments later Sokka dragged himself over the edge of the roof as well with a big pant. "We'll stop them here," the Water Tribe warrior announced. "Katara and Dad are waiting if we don't."

"We'll stop them," Zuko decided.

"If you say so," the warrior agreed, not sounding as confident as the Fire Prince, but pulling his meteorite sword free with a sharp sound none the less.

The air was filled with dread and tense anticipation. Zuko's eyes followed his sister as she closed the last distance between them. As Azula landed calmly on top of the gondola, she reminded Zuko of nothing more than a predator playing with its prey before devouring it whole. She looked nothing but dangerous at the moment, and suddenly Zuko understood what it was to stand against her as an enemy. Before, there had always been a chance for him. He could see in here eyes that was all gone.

Seconds later, Ty Lee landed lightly behind her, her stance as innocent as her face. But no one on the gondola was fooled.

Azula smiled coldly. "...Dear Zuzu," she greeted. "Such a disappointment you are."

"I don't have anything to say to you Azula." Zuko lowered his stance into the dragon form, hands wide out in front of his chest, and legs firmly apart, mimicking the great beast's claws and fangs.

But it didn't seem to have been Azula who he'd disappointed. Ty Lee leaned around her friend desperately. "Why, Zuko?" the circus acrobat asked, looking at him with pleading eyes.

"You wouldn't understand." Zuko shook his head. He'd already gone through this with Mai! Wasn't once more than enough? But somehow, he knew, it never would be. "I don't want to fight you Ty Lee," he warned, his voice heavy, "but I will if you get in my way."

Even as he finished the sentence, he noticed his sister's slight motion. Azula must have meant to surprise her foes as blue fire shot out, engulfing those who stood before its heat. But Zuko had been waiting for it, watching her. The second she launched, he was ready and moving, fire dancing at his fingertips. When the blue flames wavered and disappeared, they revealed Zuko in the center, commanding his own golden flames as he shielded his two comrades.

"Hey!"Sokka angrily pointed at the Fire Princess. "Sneak attacks aren't allowed!"

"Cry me a river, oaf," Azula grinned with a sinister stare. "All's fair in war." Her smile faded as Sokka spluttered, and she glanced back at Zuko, the predator like hunger back in her eyes again. "Ty Lee... These fools bore me. Eliminate the traitor and his ilk."

The pink-clad girl hesitated. She took a step and then halted.

Azula glanced away from Zuko, surprise barely concealed on her features as her loyal friend glanced between her and their opponents. "Ty Lee, you heard me," the princess commanded.

And once more, Ty Lee faltered for a moment. Zuko almost thought she wasn't going to attack. But then she moved with the amazing speed she was known for, leaping into the air and landing directly between Zuko and Sokka, her right fist directed at Zuko's vital spot in his neck, her left feet coming into a full swing going into Sokka's abdomen.

The scarred prince and his Water Tribe companion barely had time to deflect those blows, with Zuko quickly catching her fist by grabbing her arm, and Sokka using the flat side of his black blade to stop the kick.

"I'm sorry," Ty Lee whispered as she started to launch a spinning kick.

But another set of hands wrapped around her, stopping the kick before it started. "I'm not," Suki informed her.

The Kyoshi warrior quickly took advantage of Ty Lee's awkward position, spinning into the girl and taking hold of her arms as she threw her hard across her shoulder. It was a move that would have taken down an average foe. Unfortunately, Ty Lee was not at all average, and she twisted like a cat in mid air to land gracefully on her feet beside Azula once more.

Ty Lee's miraculous recovery didn't seem to faze the girl warrior at all. Quite the contrary, Suki smiled. "Much as I want to take down her royal highness, I'll take care of pinky here," she decided, as she dropped into her own fighting stance, not giving the acrobat the chance to gain back any ground. "Talking's over!" she called, charging in as she began to press the lithe Ty Lee away from Azula.

But if the princess was concerned at all as her friend was driven away from her, she didn't show it. Instead she turned her attention to the boys. "That only leaves the two of you against me. What a disadvantage..." A ball of blue fire came to life in Azula's palm. "...For you." As she clenched her fist, the flame dissipated, and Zuko realized he hated the dispassion in her voice.

And their own clash began.

Sokka's meteorite sword swung in her general direction, which Azula deftly avoided by diving under it, a flame bolt ready in hand to pierce the warrior. Zuko's timely intervention prevented her counterattack as he slid his feet down in a sweeping motion, fire erupting from them, causing his sister to dive to the side. Unfortunately, not before she managed to shoot out a blue blaze from her fist.

Sokka yelled out as he brought the black sword down, cleaving the blue fire and dissipating it.

The fire siblings stared at the warrior for a half second, surprised at his ingenuity. _He's gotten better, _Zuko realized, remember the boy he'd met back in the Water Tribe village. Sokka now twirled his blade to face her again, the flames having no affect whatsoever on the strange sword. "I don't think so," he grinned at Azula as her flames blew uselessly past.

His celebration was cut short as Azula recovered her surprise and began to rain an array of fire bolts from her fingertips. Sokka yelped in surprise as he felt two strong hands vaulting over his shoulder, Zuko landing directly in front of him, shooting out his own fire.

Orange fire collided with blue as each one found the other and canceled their flight.

As the blasts met each other evenly, Zuko felt his own confidence rising along side Sokka's. "Round two Azula," he narrated. "You know how it goes. The underdog always pulls through."

She shook her head, stifling a laugh. "You're right about the dog part," she agreed.

Then she ran towards her brother and leaped, her body twirling, an arc of blue flaming streaks flying off it. Simultaneously the prince and the warrior spun to their side avoiding its burning touch. She followed through with a cutting motion from her hand as another fireblast emitted, her fingertips guiding the wild element. Zuko had had enough, as he leap right into the center and cut through the hot flames with his own fist, his firebending rendering it useless. Sokka stepped through behind him in perfect sync, slashing past Azula with the strange blade.

But the princess dodged, sending a second blast Zuko's way. The warrior ducked behind him as Zuko parted the flames and returned fire. He glanced down as Sokka followed in it's wake. He was doing the same attack he just had, sword after Zuko's block. But now he was so close behind the flames that he was like it's shadow, blocked by it so Azula couldn't see him. She blocked the flames, and in the mere second that she did, her attention was focused completely on the brightly, blinding flames. That was all the opening Sokka needed, his sword slashing horizontally against Azula before she could recover from the flames.

Her eyes wide, she stepped back, the sharp blade swinging just inches from her eyes. But even though she'd managed to avoid, she was trapped. Her step was cut short as she ran out of space on the gondola roof. Another inch back, and she was in for a long fall with a boiling finish. Pressing the advantage, Zuko shot two blasts from his fists, fireballs streaming towards her feet as he strove to break her root.

But somehow, the Fire Princess managed to avoid the blasts, just barely, by jumping in the air again, this time landing perpendicular to the ground in a straight position. Though she was flat against the roof, her legs and hips weren't on it, and she was lifted six inches off the stone, supported only by her palms. She gripped the very edge of the gondola, hovering over the empty space that dropped down in the lake almost effortlessly, once again demonstrating her skill and prowess as a natural fighter.

As if that wasn't enough, she did a half push up from that pose, swinging her lags back onto the gondola through her arms, flinging off a bright blue blast for the boys to avoid, attacking even as she recovered.

Both Zuko and Sokka's jaw clenched tighter in desperation as they sidestepped. What was it going to take to shake this unrelenting huntress off?

* * *

Katara leaned over the edge of the gondola, staring up at her brother, when a voice from the distant platform caught her attention. "I see him!" a guard called in a voice made smaller by the distance.

Suddenly the prisoners gasped and cried out, rocking the gondola as they dodged what appeared to be a pink streak swinging across the roof shot threw the gondola. Katara was rocked into the edge as Ty Lee swung back up the other side of the gondola. She pushed off the wall as she saw the Warden stumble towards the back, across from her. He pulled his hands free from the bindings and whipped the tie out of his mouth. "Stop him!" Katara shouted, surging against the cramped prisoners and making a grab for him.

"Cut the line!" he bellowed.

Chi Tzang grabbed him, yanking him back in the gondola and silencing him, but it was too late. Katara saw the guard drop his spy glass, and they began milling around, obviously deciding to follow the Warden's orders. Somehow they produced a big metal brace and a saw with rapid organization.

As they slid the brace into the wheel, the gondola screeched and rocked as it swung, stopping and starting in a jarring fashion. "Hang on to something!" Katara shouted as it lurched.

The prisoners rattled into each other, grabbing onto ledges, windows and roof hangings, anything that was bolted down. Katara could hear shouting from the roof above her as the fighters slipped and slid around. Sokka's legs appeared at the other end of the gondola, and dangled for a second. Katara stared to scream, but suddenly the Boulders weight shifted, and he almost knocked her over.

When he stumbled back off her and she regained her footing, Sokka's legs were gone. She heard Ty Lee's voice above her. "They're about to cut the line!" the girl yelled out, and Katara's eyes spun to the platform.

She was right. The guards had the saw out and were hacking at the now still cable holding the gondola stopped. "Sokka!" Katara shouted, as blue fire suddenly shout outside the window.

She gasped as Azula rocketed out into space, only to have a gondola coming down appear beneath her. Moments later, Ty Lee landed beside her, and the two began the decent back to the loading dock. Suddenly, Zuko shot through the window beside her. "They're cutting the line," he reported to Hakoda as he came to his feet. "The gondola's about to go!"

"I hope this thing floats," Hakoda prayed as Sokka and Suki dropped back into the passenger zone beside him.

"Anything you can do to help?" Sokka asked Katara.

"This thing is made of metal," she objected. "If it falls, well... there's not much I can do to keep it up."

"Then this is it," Chi Tzang declared, taking Phong's hand in his own.

Katara inhaled deeply as she surveyed the people on the gondola. Her friends, and family. People who trusted her. "I don't know what I can do," she whispered, opening determined eyes. "But I'll try."

Zuko glanced at her, his face unreadable. He opened his mouth, but before he could speak the Boulder leaned over the edge. "Maybe this is not the end," he called as he pointed a big finger. "Behold!"

"Who is that?" Hakoda asked, staring.

"Mai," Zuko whispered, and Katara noticed his face seemed suddenly soft. "What's she... doing?"

"Looks like... she's saving us..." Sokka marveled.

Zuko just stood gaping as he watched the scene unfolding before his eyes.

* * *

She couldn't believe what she was doing. Her hands moved on their own, tossing two stiletto knives with deadly accuracy, pinning the two of the guards against the wall.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" one of them shouted, as he dropped the saw he'd been using.

"...Saving the jerk who dumped me," she answered in a dreary monotone, feeling annoyance creeping over her; but on her pretty face no one else could tell.

The guards were caught by surprise the first time, but now she'd made her intentions clear. The Warden's niece or not, the order had come and it was absolute. They were to cut the line, and no one was to stand in their way. It was a courageous attitude for mere prison guards, though foolish in retrospect.

Three of them moved to subdue the raven-haired girl only to find themselves hurling backwards, knives biting into steel and pinning them firmly on the wall, as they struggled aimlessly.

More began to shoot flames at her, but she dove and slide behind the wheel well, throwing even as she skidded across the ground. All around her, guards stuck to the wall uselessly. As one attacked her, she blocked, and knifed the two behind him. They cried out in surprise as she pinned them, their comrade right behind them.

Mai realized she was well prepared for this, and now she was more then willing. At first, she had been angry at Zuko. But when she saw him again she'd discovered it had never changed what he meant to her. He was Zuko, and whether he was wrong or right didn't matter any more. She knew that now. This, at least, was something she could do for him.

"Stop her you idiots!" someone bellowed.

She didn't care. They were all going down anyway.

A guard tried to sneak behind her only to find nothing but air as he grabbed at Mai, who was one step ahead of the fellow. She twirled a stiletto dagger in one hand, she pushed him with the other. When he was down on the ground it was an easy feat for her to just pin him there.

"Don't you know it's rude to grab a lady from behind?" her deep voice mocked with discontent.

But then the constant sound of metal clanking indicated more guards to come, which only made Mai sigh.

She was out of her favored stilettos but she was far from helpless. The hidden wrist compartment she had on opened up, revealing long thin needles. Carefully she took aim and the senbon needles sailed through the air, each one finding their fleshy targets; necks, wrists, and legs.

And all the guards fell abruptly, as if a wave of fatigue overcame them.

Mai silently thanked Ty Lee from the bottom of her heart. Those long boring lectures of pressure points did come in handy.

Yet it seems as for every guard who fell, two arrived to take his place.

And the projectile specialist was running out of sharp pointy things to subdue them with.

In one last, defiant move Mai pulled out a large folded blade-like contraption, only to have it expose into its true form. Four blades glinted proudly in each direction just like its namesake. The windmill shuriken was a weapon to be not taken lightly.

Spotting the arriving guards from the stairs she threw it with all her might as it whirled and whistled in the air.

The guards paused at the top of the stairs cringing in fear of the projectile, only to find it no where near in sight.

"Haha! You missed!!' they snickered in relief, only to have their celebration cut short as a massive crate landed down upon them, knocking down the guards and sending all of them tumbling down the flight of stairs.

"I _never_ miss." Mai walked calmly towards the control and kicked the brace of the wheel with ease, catching the returning shuriken in one hand.

Her lips curved slightly to form one sad smile, as her eyes looked into the distance, where the gondola was. She watched as it carried the boy she loved away, no longer caring about the war, or her country, or even her family or Azula. All she could see was him.

_Zuko you idiot... _

It was taking all of her to not cry right there.

* * *

As the cool, projectile specialist kicked the brace out of the wheel, starting the gondola moving again, every prisoner on the gondola let out a loud cheer Katara was sure Mai could hear, even with the distance. The girl's head turned towards them slightly, and Zuko inhaled sharply. "What?" Katara asked, worried he was hurt.

"She... smiled," he whispered.

Katara tried to think of something to say, but she didn't get the chance. The gondola screeched to a halt as it landed on the far bank landing dock. Suki burst out the other door. "We made it!" she shouted, guiding the prisoners out.

The Boulder charged out the door and took a deep breath. "Ah! The Boulder has missed freedom and the smell of dirt!"

"I hear you," Chi Tzang agreed as he followed the big man, Phong still clutching his hand. "It's been... too long for me." He hefted the Warden on his shoulder and glanced at Hakoda as the last of the prisoners filed out. "What do we do with him?" he asked.

Hakoda pointed back on the gondola, and Chi Tzang tossed the bound man back onto the stone lift. "Sorry, Warden," the Water Tribe warrior proclaimed. "Your record is officially broken." Then he slammed the door on the kicking Warden.

"Haha, nice one Dad," Sokka congratulated, slapping his father's back.

"That's my boy," Hakoda grinned. "Let's go."

"Well," Suki commented as they charged up the slope, "we made it out. Now what?"

Zuko stopped when she asked, and the group turned back to him. "Zuko, what are you doing?" Sokka demanded.

The Fire Prince didn't answer. His eyes still lock on the prison they had just recently escaped.

"Zuko?" Katara walked towards him slowly.

"...Mai..."

His eyes darted back in forth between Katara's and the prison. She knew he was struggling with a choice, thought what it was she could not say.

"Zuko we got to go!" Sokka reached out a hand and gripped the prince's shoulder, which somehow brought Zuko out of his trance.

"...yeah... yeah, I know," he responded half-heartedly, his answer a reluctant one. His feet shuffled only slightly that Katara had to help guide him where they were going. It was odd to see him that way. He was normally so focused, to see him distracted as if in another world seemed... odd. But then his vacant gaze changed somehow. "My sister was on that island," he stated abruptly.

"Yeah," Sokka agreed, "and she's probably right behind us, so let's not stop."

"What I mean is, she must have come here somehow," he clarified.

Then he turned charged up the edge of the cliff instead of the path. "Zuko!" Katara called, as she and her brother started after him. Half of the party had noticed the prince's hesitation now, and had turned back. Katara hustled after him as he stopped at the edge of the cliff. "Where are you..." She stopped as she reached the top, the entire island and the expanse of ocean spread out before her, shinning and free.

"There!" Zuko pointed as the rest of the group caught up. "That's our way out of here," he finished, gesturing at the giant balloon below them.

Katara winced as her gaze fell on the harsh looking Fire Nation monster. "But, how will we fly that?" she asked.

"I know how," Gouliang supplied. "I used to work on one."

"And we've got plenty of firebenders to power the engine," Zuko added.

"Here here," some of the benders called as Hakoda nodded.

"Yeah," Sokka surmised. "For once, I think Katara's bleeding heart actually did us some good. " Katara was quick to dig in an elbow between his ribs.

"I'm just saying!" he pointed out breathily.

Suddenly, Zuko started laughing. Katara raised a confused eyebrow. She had never heard the prince laugh - it was a strange experience. He put his hand to his forehead, brushing back his hair as he chortled.

"It wasn't that funny," Sokka huffed, but his lips pouted, and then he started laughing too.

After a few moments, Katara and Suki joined in the giggles, without even knowing why. It could be the exhilaration freedom brought or the waning of the adrenaline in their bodies but they couldn't stop smiling.

"I'm sorry," Zuko confessed, as their gale of laughter died down. "I'm just pleased to be out of there. I almost thought we wouldn't make it..."

"Was it worth it then?" Katara asked Sokka, reminding them all who's idea it had been.

Sokka glanced down at the prisoners behind them, his father, Suki and the Boulder in the lead, and nodded. "Yeah," he concluded. "It was. But now I am so ready to just go home."

"And where's that?" Suki asked, quietly.

Sokka shrugged nonchalantly. "Wherever Aang is. Right Katara?" The boy grinned as his sister blushed slightly.

"Yeah," she murmured. "Let's go home."

* * *

The balloon was a huge success, even though the flight motions of it took a bit of getting used to, especially for the earthbenders. The Boulder spent the first few hours of the trip stumbling up and down the halls of the giant war balloon, bellowing as he smashed stuff. Gouliang really took charge, which was an amazing turn around for the previously timid boy. Katara's speech and Zuko's friendship really seemed to have caused a turn around in the boy.

The balloon left the prison behind in a matter of hours. Four firebenders at a time had to take turns fueling it, because of the weight of the balloon and all it's passengers, so they arranged two hour shifts. At first they were frustrated and tired, the excitement of the day having worn off, but when Zuko asked Gouliang when his shift was, the rest seemed to cool of. They, at least, had really taken to Zuko as their leader. He may have been an outcast, but now, so were they.

That's why Katara felt so bad when they stopped back on the mainland to let the passengers off. "We can't show everyone where the avatar is," her father determined, and while she knew he was right, she felt reluctant at letting some of the prisoners go free by themselves.

"Where will you go?" she asked Wei.

"Home," he replied, "to take back our kingdom, and kick out the Dai Li." His men nodded in agreement.

"That won't be easy," Zuko considered.

"No," Wei acknowledged, "but a lot of things we've done lately haven't been easy. But if I've learned anything from you two, it's that you have to stand up for things that are worth fighting for, because no one else will do it for you. I'm sure there are others back home who feel the same. They might just need some... encouraging."

Katara smiled as she shook the older man's hand. "I'm glad to have known you," she admitted.

"And I you," he replied, before moving on to say his good-byes to Suki.

Zuko turned to Fire Nation prisoners. "And you guys?" he asked them.

"Those of us who have homes will go to them," one spoke up.

"And those of you who don't?" he asked, glancing at Gauliang, Chi Tzang and Phong.

"We'll go with Wei," Gouliang answered. "If he'll have us."

Wei turned at the mention of his name. "To Ba Sing Se?" he confirmed.

Gouliang nodded. "There, or wherever else we're needed."

"This is a war," Phong provided. "And we'll fight anywhere we're useful. We're on your side," she added, to Katara and Zuko.

Katara smiled. "I'm glad."

"And," Wei accepted, "we could use all the help we can get, right guys?"

One of his men nodded silently, and the one called Ping smiled. "You'd be a big help," he admitted.

"Then consider it done," Phong agreed.

"What about the balloon?" Gouliang asked. "You can't power it with just one firebender."

The talk died out as they glanced around, the question hanging in the air.

"I'll go with them," Chi Tzang said suddenly. "That is," he amended, glancing at Katara and her brother, "if you trust me to come along."

"What about Phong?" Suki asked, leaning around Sokka. "You don't want to leave her, do you?"

"This is more important," Chi Tzang confirmed. "You kids have shown me that. Besides," he added, "I know where she's going. And it's a long way to Ba Sing Se. I'm sure I'll catch up."

Phong glanced up at him. "You'd better," she determined, squeezing his hand.

He smiled and kissed her. "Well guys?" he asked, when Katara and Zuko glanced at each other, blushed, and looked away. "How 'bout it. Will you have me?"

"I, ah, can't see as we have a choice," Zuko nonchalantly accepted.

"Thank you," Katara agreed, taking his hand.

So they parted, each group going their own way. Katara, Zuko, Sokka, Suki, Hakoda and Chi Tzang heading for the western air temple, Zuko and Chi Tzang working the bellows, Sokka at the helm. When Chi Tzang took a break to eat, Katara found Zuko working double time, sweat pouring down his face as he stood close to the flames, keeping the huge balloon afloat.

"Look's like hard work," she commented casually.

"Yeah," he admitted. "Did you... want something?" he asked, after a moment.

"Her name was Mai right?" she started. He tensed a bit, but then nodded. "Sokka told me about it... you and her. Is that why she saved us?"

"I don't know," Zuko replied, working his flames. He glanced over at the waterbender as she sat on the metal steps and watched him. Then he looked away, keeping his gaze on his flames. Katara was ready to accept that he was done talking, when he finally spoke again. "But, I'd like to think so."

She studied him. He was so different from the angry, spoiled prince who had shown up on the icy shores of her village of what seemed so long ago. Now he had the fresh scars of battle across his whole body, not just his face, and he was much rougher in many ways. Though she realized his face was much softer. He was still serious and determined, but there was a new compassion about his face she had never seen before. She felt as if she could see all the hard work he'd put into his life, every struggle he'd faced and overcome. Sweat ran down his body as she studied the almost healed whip marks and still red arrow wound. But the prince moved as if they were nothing. She wondered if she'd ever really known him.

"You know," he started, at the same time she began to ask, "How did you-"

They both stopped, embarrassed. "I'm sorry," Katara apologized. "Go ahead."

"It's okay. You go," he denied.

"I... didn't really have anything to say," she confessed. "I just felt like someone should talk." Asking about his scars might be to big of a step. At least, for now, she decided. Zuko frowned. "What were you going to say?" she urged him.

"Just that... Back in that prison, I realized something."

"What?" she asked.

He looked up at her, his golden eyes sharp in that way that seemed to pierce right through her again. Every time he looked at her like that, she felt her breath catch. "I realized I don't really know anything about you."

"What?"

"I've been chasing you guys for what seems like a lifetime," he admitted, his gaze drifting to the roof. "And I hardly know anything about any of you."

Katara marveled that he had been thinking the same thing as her. She closed her mouth and rose, tugging her blue clothes straight as she did. "Well, now that we're stuck with you, I guess we'll have to start learning about each other," she agreed. "After all, that's what friends do, right?"

"Really?" Zuko asked, his gaze returning to her.

"Of course," she laughed. "Haven't you ever had friends before?"

"...Not really." His face fell slightly. Then he went another direction. "I meant, can we really be friends?" he asked. "After... everything?"

She crossed her arms as she leaned back against the furnace. "Actually, I don't know," she admitted. "That's up to you as much as anyone else." She looked back into those golden eyes. "I'm sorry I'm so stubborn-"

"No," he cut her off. "That's how it should be." He stared into the flames. "I've been betrayed... so many times before. No matter how much you tell yourself someone always lies... it's hard not to make the same mistakes over and over." Katara's eyebrows dropped as her arms uncrossed. She watched the prince's face as it turned back to her. "But I want to really change this time. So, don't give me any breaks. I want to prove to you I can do this."

"Then," Katara agreed, "I'll be watching you."

She smiled as he nodded, so seriously. Then the door opened and Chi Tzang came back in. "Hanging in there?" he asked.

"Yeah," Zuko nodded. "But I could use the help."

"You want dinner?" Katara asked, and he shook his head.

"Later maybe."

"All right," she nodded. She glanced at Chi Tzang. "Sokka asked me to tell you guys we're almost there. About an hour away. Do you guys want to take a break?"

"Naw," Chi Tzang waved her off. "I could keep this thing up for an hour by myself."

Zuko snorted. "I'm tempted to take you up on that."

Chi Tzang laughed, and Katara smiled as she left the firebenders, leaning out a window as the balloon drew closer and closer to home. _It's wherever Aang is, right Katara? _Sokka's voice echoed in her mind.

"Aang," she whispered, picturing the boy. He smiled his goofy smile up at her a she remembered him. When she saw that, she knew everything would be okay. There, where he was smiling, that was home. "I've missed you..."

* * *

"There it is," Zuko adamantly stated, watching as Katara walked towards the window shaft gazing into the clear blue. They had arrived at dawn just as Sokka had predicted.

The sight of the Western Air Temple had never been more magnificent nor compelling to behold then that moment, where the silver lining of the clouds touched upon its peaks and the warm orange glow wrapped itself around the mountain like a tender lover. Zuko's heart swayed with awe. It was beautiful.

"We're finally home," Katara glanced behind her and flashed her captivating smile upon the expecting prince.

"Uh, right... home." He reluctantly smiled, feeling himself flushed. "You should wake your brother up. Tell him to raise some signal for the Avat- I mean, Aang. We don't want to come this far only to be shot down by our own friends."

Katara gave him a mischievous grin, which baffled Zuko. "What?" he asked.

"You said friends."

"Am I not allowed to use that word now?" He cocked an eyebrow.

"No it's just... so different, from when I first met you." Her blue eyes glinted as she looked at him.

As she slowly made her way out of the hot bellows, Zuko sighed a bit to himself. Girls would always be a mystery to him. But it was pleasant of Katara to keep him company throughout the night.

The Avatar must have seen the signal Sokka implemented considering there were no violent gales or maelstroms approaching the balloon that bore the Fire Nation insignia. Zuko watched as the members of their group milled about instead, excitedly observing the approach of the massive new balloon. It did not take long for them to land and dock the massive flying machination on the mountain's cliff side.

Zuko and Sokka opened the hatch with enthusiasm, and found the gang they had left behind with slack-jawed expressions.

"What... IS THAT?" Teo marveled, as he took off his goggles.

"What? What is it?" Toph's irked tone came from the fact that she couldn't fully see what the whole commotion was, as the balloon was not entirely on the ground.

"What are you doing in this thing? What happened to the war balloon?" The Duke curiously asked.

The two arriving boys glanced at each other. "It kind of got destroyed," Zuko explained nonchalantly.

"What happened? Where'd you guys go?" Haru quipped.

"That must have been some crazy fishing trip," Aang floated down from his glider, landing right in front of the ship.

"It's a long story. Let's just say it got a little bit... wild," the prince grinned, surprising the twelve year old avatar with his attempted joke.

The boy searched for a change of topic. "So... where's Katara?" he questioned brightly instead.

"I'm right here, Aang," the girl's voice drifted down the ramp.

Zuko and Aang turned as Katara gracefully made her way out of the balloon behind the two boys. Her presence was greeted by a sudden hug from the young monk, bringing out crimson shades upon her cheeks, which Zuko picked up upon quite hastily. Why had he never noticed it before? It seemed so obvious now. A slight twinge of awkward feelings pulled at his heart, but he couldn't quite describe what it was. Surely it was just the feeling of satisfaction of having returned the Avatar's closest confidant back to him. That must be it.

Everyone's staring must have gotten to the playful Avatar as he let go of the embrace.

"I guess what I mean is welcome back." He shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Did you at least get some good meat?" Toph asks.

"I did," Sokka stated proudly. "The best meat of all. The meat of friendship and father-"

Katara manage to elbow her brother once more, interfering with what he was about to say. "Sokka. The day started out so great. Let's not ruin it." She grinned as she looked back at the balloon as the rest of its crew made their arrival known.

"Aang. You've met my father." She smiled beautifully as she re-introduced the arriving warrior.

The man ginned, so like his son, as he came down the ramp. "It's an honor to have returned, young Avatar. I trust you've been well?" Hakoda nodded serenely to the young bender.

Aang bowed back, but no matter how well he took it, there were some in the party who weren't about to let the shock of the moment slip away uncommented. "No way!" Toph broke into a triumphant stare. "You guys didn't!"

"Oh yes we did," Katara dared her.

"We kind of went to a Fire Nation prison," Sokka breathed out with a smirk.

"And we're really grateful for that," Suki cut in as she strode down the ramp to stand beside her boyfriend, who was still rubbing the sore spot Katara had made on his ribs with her elbow.

"I'm new," Chi Tzang waved as he followed the girl. "What's up everybody?"

As the pleasantries continued Zuko couldn't help but feel proud of what they had accomplished. It wasn't everyday that one could say they had escaped what some had claimed to have been the inescapable. He was definitely in a successful mood. That is, until he glanced at the happy Water Tribe family.

The proud chief hugged both his son and daughter in a fierce embrace. All three of their faces were laughing and smiling. Especially Katara's.

The uncomfortable feeling returned and Zuko couldn't help but isolate himself from the group as he slowly walked off, hoping to not give away his presence.

The last thing he heard was the voice of the blind Toph as she asked if they actually found any meat.

"Where are you going, hotman?" a voice called up from behind him playfully; it was a sound he had grown to know oh so well in the past couple of days.

"I was just... a little worn, " Zuko lied, turning to face Katara. "I thought I could maybe splash some water on my face or something."

"And here I thought you were just trying to avoid a crowd," she humored him.

"I-"

Katara must have found his stuttering amusing as she giggled pleasantly. "I was just kidding, Zuko."

Ending her laughter she took two strides forward and met the prince eye to eye. Zuko never really thought of it before but he was taller then the waterbender, yet that did not stop blue and gold eyes from meeting. She had always been like that, looking straight at him, no matter her size.

Slowly she took his hand, her palm dainty and small compared to his.

"Thank you," she stated seriously. "For everything."

Zuko's eyes glinted, as if doubting those words.

"I never would have thought it possible," she continued. "But we did it. We got my Dad out and done a little good deed in the process." She paused. Then, "...It was because you were there."

The Fire Prince didn't know how to respond to such praise. Anger and scorn he understood well, but here was a beautiful girl thanking him and his mind could barely process the thought. It took all of his being to stumble out an awkward, "You're welcome."

He did not even notice Katara's hand slipping away from his until she replaced them with a delicate blue cloth that held a beautifully carved stone.

"Make sure to wash properly," the healer instructed him. "And when all of this war is over, I want that returned to me as soon as possible. It was my mother's." She flashed him a smile, as she turned around, her hair dancing with the wind coming from the mountain top.

What compelled him to move he did not know, and frankly he did not care. He wrapped an arm around an alarmed Katara, twirling her to face him as he brought his face closer to hers. She blinked, confusion in her eyes. And, quite frankly, he wasn't surprised. Even he was unsure what he was doing. But now that she was in his grasp, his world seemed to have been flipped upside down, and he couldn't stop the words that were tumbling out of his mouth. "You like him, don't you?" he heard himself ask.

She continued to stare, opening and closing her mouth, even further confused. "I..."

"Never mind," he shook his head, releasing her, though the feeling would not go. "It was a stupid question."

She hesitated a moment, then spoke, her voice much softer than he remembered it. "Aang and I are... complicated. I'm assuming that he's who you were talking about?"

Zuko swallowed around a strange lump that seemed to have stuck itself in his throat. "It's not my business." Yet his heart was racing.

"Are you sure you're alright?" she asked, her hand touching his shoulder with that gentle probing he'd become accustomed to.

"It's just... everything will be different now," he tried to explain.

"How?" she asked.

"Back in the prison, you and I... I kind of liked it like that. Having you around, it was... good. And I felt like... I made a difference. Like I was doing something right." He struggled to find the words, "I just... I don't think it will be the same any more."

Katara placed a finger over his lips and he stopped. "I understand. That's why I gave you that," she added, glancing down at his hands.

His eyes followed hers and he focused on the strange item he was holding tightly. His eyes widened as he recognized it. "This... this is..."

"I told you," she replied. "It was my mother's. And in the Water Tribe, it represents a promise."

His eyes rose to meet her very deep blue ones, and he felt himself searching them for something even he wasn't sure of. "Why are you giving it to me? I thought it was... special to you."

"It is," she affirmed. "Which is why I want you to have it." He quirked an eyebrow in confusion, and she elaborated. "You tell me that you don't want me to judge you based on your actions back in the prison, that you want to prove yourself to me. But what you did _was _proving yourself. I'm not saying that out of guilt, but because... I really did admire what you did. And I don't want to forget it either. This is your promise. Our promise."

"So, what does this mean then?" he asked, feeling the soft, blue fabric slide between his fingers like water.

"It means, it's a start. For both of us." Somehow, he was being moved by her words, the same as when she'd given her speech, but different too. These words were just for him, and they were even more potent. "Entrusting you with it means... that I trust you. It's not everything, but... it's a step."

"But, it was your mother's," he realized, recalling all she had told him about her. He held it out. "I don't need this. Just saying it is enough."

But she shook her head slowly. "I don't need that to remember her," the girl assured him.

"But... I already burned your hair," he reminded her. "I don't want to take this too."

She grinned, and pulled away from him as she flipped a finger under his chin. "Don't worry," she laughed at the surly expression he made, "I'll get you back for that."

Zuko then heard Sokka calling Katara's name.

"I'll see you back at the camp. The others are waiting; they probably want to hear everything." Her lips curled a smile for one last time before finally going back, leaving him alone in the dark.

Zuko watched her figure from behind, not even blinking until she was gone, as if afraid to miss a second of it. He no longer bothered to wonder what was happening with him, because he now knew full well the answer to that. Ever since he had followed the strange urge to grab her moments ago, something had begun to burn within him, threatening to consume him. And for once he was eager to give in to his desire, barely containing that hunger. It was undeniable now, and he was past the point of turning back.

The irony of it all was too much for the Fire Nation prince to bear, and he slowly began to chortle a nervous laugh.

Somewhere, in the confusion of it all, the one thing he thought not possible had happened.

The Prince of the Fire Nation had fallen for the Water Tribe peasant.


	17. Chapter 17:Survival Hunt

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: hey, we're back! ten days seemed to just fly by! i know it didn't for some of you readers, especially since we were so exhausted we didn't get around to posting this until a few days after we got back, but hey, we were really tired! and, you gotta give us a break. trombe moved while we were in yosemite from a house to an apartment down the street, so when we got back, we still had to spend time moving stuff.  
_

**Trombe: Talk about getting right back to work after play.**

_artsyelric: but yosemite was really good! except for the part where i got the stomach flu on our overnight to halfdome... not fun..._

**Trombe: Half Dome hates you.**

_artsyelric: for real it hates me. last time we went (like last year) i got my period halfway up that infernal mountain (yes, that monthly female visitor, for those of you still laboring under the confusing delusion that i am a boy XP) and this time (as in these last few days) i got the stomach flu on the hike, and was throwing up all the way to the top. bleh. but i still made it! HUZZAH!  
_

_thanks to everyone who wished us a good time, because we really had a great trip. trombe and i both made halfdome, river rafted on the toluonme river (however you spell that)and much more. yes, we saw bears XDDD one even came into our campsite on our overnight to halfdome and moved my dad's backpack, feet away from where we were sleeping on the dirt. dun dun dun! but thanks to _smartcheer917_ because she said_ "if a bear eats you i bet that the fans for this story will find and maul that bear" _and i just thought that was so funny i thought about it the entire trip XDD_

_thanks for still being here when we got back! everyone, stay excited! season finale of avatar FINALLY to be released this month! eeep! i can't wait!_

_and now, back to our story:_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 17: Survival Hunt **

* * *

"Again."

Flames spurted around them.

"Again!" Zuko bellowed out.

And with his command, Aang grunted as he stretched out his palm and generated an intense blaze.

But it was apparently not intense enough with the way Zuko shook his head.

"No, no, no! How many times haves I got to tell you Aang?! Firebending is from the breath; the air you breathe in and out. What were you doing while I was gone? That was not good enough!" Zuko berated; the Avatar was a quick learner and a dedicated disciple but was easily distracted and not as disciplined as the prince would have liked.

"Hey I'm trying okay?! It's not as easy as it looks!" Aang answered with equal frustration in his voice.

"You're the Avatar! How hard can it be?!" Zuko caught himself too late as he spoke the words. Aang was just a boy, barely a man. Harsh words did not necessarily make Zuko the better teacher. "Look that was uncalled for-"

"I'd say," the twelve year old Avatar grudgingly agreed.

"I'm just not used to this whole teaching thing," the fire prince admitted, running a hand through his hair. "Let's start over." Zuko calmly placed himself beside the Avatar, ready to do the forms with him.

After a moment, the younger boy nodded and joined him. They both took a slow breath before beginning. "Just like the masters told us; fire is life." Enforcing his words Zuko started out slow. "It is the essence in every living being." He placed a step forward with his left knee raise up to his waist, fists in front ready to crash down, with Aang mimicking his every movement.

"To bring a piece of this essence out you need direct control over your body," the teacher continued as the two moved through the matched forms. "Firebending is not like the other bending principles. We don't control the outside world, the external chi." Zuko placed a single fist in front of him allowing orange flames to explode from his fingertips in demonstration of the art, with Aang hanging on his every word. "Rather we look inward, to master the chi within. Fire is you, Aang. Not the air above, not the earth beneath, not the water around you. Only you." Zuko placed one fingertip pointing directly at the young Avatar's heart.

"Do you get what I'm saying?"

"Sort of," the bald little monk scratched his head, trying to understand the older firebender.

"This is serious work. Fire is a dangerous element. It demands your respect. An inexperienced firebender who has not mastered his breathing can be more of a danger to himself then his opponents. He could start an uncontrollable wild fire or have the fire explode right in his face." Zuko looked around a bit before coughing up his next words. "...Trust me on that."

Aang's face perked up, curiosity getting the better of him. "Speaking from experience, Si Fu?"

Zuko rubbed his temple, clearly embarrassed about a memory of long ago. "...You could say that."

His answer seemed to have satisfied the younger pupil as Aang was complacent throughout the day and was actually paying attention to his teachings. As the day went on Zuko felt himself sweating profusely as he naturally did during firebending exercises and naturally reacted by taking off his tunic.

"Whoa! What happened to your back?!" Aang yelped out in surprise.

Zuko had forgotten about the lash wounds. He cursed silently, racking his brain to come up with an excuse. No one else needed to know what he had done in the prison. What he had done for Katara.

"Prison, Avatar. The Boiling Rock isn't exactly a vacation spot you would want on your list," Zuko supplied, decided to leave it as generally broad as he could. He had learned recently of the long list of places Aang wanted to visit as he traveled the world, and had only then come to understand why chasing the hyperactive Avatar had been so pointlessly difficult. "Let's continue," he stated, hoping to avoid any more talk about the subject of his lashes.

Aang was no fool, and Zuko was clearly not being completely forthright, but he respected the prince's decision to not want to talk about it and moved on with the training.

"Having fun boys?" They both whirled around to find Katara there, ready with some refreshments at hand.

"Lemon tea," she offered, proffering the tray, "just the way you like it, Aang. With plenty of honey." She smiled in a sweet way Zuko was unaccustomed to.

"Man, this is great! Thanks Katara!" The eager Avatar was quick to snatch up the drink from the waterbender and was soon gulping it down ferociously.

Zuko's eyes then met hers. With his sudden revelation fresh in mind, it was hard not to stare at the object of his hidden affection, but Zuko tried desperately to calm himself.

"I didn't know what you liked to drink-"

"Just water would have been fine," Zuko awkwardly interrupted her.

"Oh... but I made you some Jasmine tea." She offered the cup in front of him.

Noticing how her face had fallen slightly when he'd asked for water, he reached awkwardly for the tea cup. "Ah... well, thank you."

Zuko took the tea and gave a small gracious bow with his head before taking a sip. He wanted to contort his face the minute he tasted its flavor. Maybe he had gotten spoiled by the delicious tea his uncle made, or maybe it was because jasmine was not always his favorite, whatever the reason, Zuko couldn't fathom how disgustingly bitter the content of the cup was. It took all of his willpower to gulp down the mouthful of tea.

"Well, how was it? This is the first time I've actually brewed jasmine." Katara's blue eyes stared at him hopefully.

"Um..." _How am I suppose to respond to that?_ Zuko had found that blunt honesty was never really the ideal philosophy to take when it came to girls. He wanted to compliment Katara. Not make her want to slap him. Realizing he was taking a while to respond, he settled for, "It's... interesting."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah... its _definitely_ something I haven't tasted before." Technically he was not lying at all.

"I never knew it was that good before. Mind if I have a sip? I haven't actually tried it." Zuko's eyes went wide as Katara tried to take the cup away from him.

"No!" he yelled out, surprising Katara who gave him a puzzling look. He must have been loud as Aang stared at him too. "Um, what I mean is that... I'm thirsty?" He tried his best to sound convincing, coming up with a goofy crooked smile that made his teeth hurt.

Katara looked at him for a second before letting a tiny pout cross her lips. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "You could have just said so, Zuko," she huffed. But then she smiled charmingly again. He felt entranced, watching her shifting emotions. "Please," she beamed. "Go ahead."

Zuko stared at the cup he held in his hand, his grip around it tense and shaking. He smiled nervously at Katara before taking one last look at the tea before taking a plunge and gulping it all down in one sip. By the end of it Zuko thought he was going to die.

"... " He fought against the urge to hurl it all out. "Truly... _enlightening_. Thank you." He handed her the cup weakly.

"I didn't know I made such good tea. Dad and Sokka wouldn't let me try their's either. They should have told me if they wanted more."

Zuko placed a hand on his stomach, trying to settle in the pain, feeling sympathetic to his fellow Water Tribe comrades.

"Well... I guess I should leave you two alone to continue your training."

"That would be best," Zuko grinned through it.

"Oh!" Before the prince knew what was happening, Katara had licked her thumb and made her way to Zuko's cheek. He started as he realized he could feel her soft finger brushing against his skin, and his face flushed a bit. Katara smiled as she flicked her thumb off his cheek. "You had a little bit of dirt there." She grunted a little laugh, turning away from the blushing Zuko as Aang returned his cup to her tray. The Avatar gave her a big smile as their eyes crossed. "I'll see you guys when your done." Turning her back to them she walked back to camp.

As she walked away, the prince realized he was staring at her back as she went. The way her hips moved, and how she twisted slightly as she walked, made the blue robes flow across her like real water. He watched each motion in awe.

Aang stepped between Zuko and his line of vision, blocking Katara, and he shook his head, clearing the vision of her from his mind. He might be falling for this girl, but he prayed to whatever high power was above that she never made that kind of tea again. Maybe he could teach her later. Uncle always said he liked the tea Zuko brewed. He must have, considering his cup was always empty every time Zuko served his tea...

* * *

Katara sighed as she knelt over the dinner dishes, her stomach still rumbling. Behind her she could hear Sokka complaining loudly about his own, constantly famished state. _At least he's out of his room, _Katara remarked to herself. Ever since Suki had arrived, the most she had seen of her brother was a meals, the rest of the time the two lost lovers were cloistered away somewhere. _Just because his girlfriend's here doesn't mean the rest of the chores and camp ceases to exist, _she shook her head. But, now that he was here, she almost wished he wasn't.

"You'd think after almost a week in prison, a guy could get a good meal," he complained.

"Hey," Toph pointed out, "I'm hungry too. And we'd have something to cook if you'd _actually _been hunting instead of lallygagging around in a prison."

"First of all," Sokka condemned her in a high and mighty voice, "rescuing my father hardly qualifies as 'lallygagging', and secondly, I'll have you know, _I _am this group's designated complaining guy, so just leave that part to me, lil' lady."

As Toph buried Sokka's face in his soup for calling her lady, Hakoda laughed, his deep voice booming through the campsite in a rich way Katara realized she had really missed. "Don't worry about him," her father grinned, eyeing the spluttering warrior with mirth, "he's just upset because we had to leave the Boulder behind. You should've seen his face when the big fellow said he was going to escort Wei's group partway to Ba Sing Se. You'd think he'd be happy enough with his girlfriend and father, but oh no! We're just not the same as 'The Boulder'!"

The group laughed alongside Hakoda's deep rumble, and Katara found herself joining in. But her giggles died quickly as her eyes fell on their remaining food supply. Chi Tzang alone was eating through most of it, not to mention her ravenous male relations. "Laugh all you want guys," she pointed out, turning back to the group, "but Appa's the only one with food for more than another day or two. _Somebody's _going to have to get some."

"I thought that's what you sent Haru, Teo and the Duke to do," Suki pointed out.

"Yeah, but they're not back yet," Katara agreed. "And they only went a short way from the temple. There's not much food on a giant cliff face, and it's dangerous to stray too far. I told Haru to make sure everyone got back before it got too dark," she added, glancing towards the setting sun.

"You worry too much," her brother groaned. "They coulda gone far enough to get meat if you'd just let them stay out past dark."

"Teo and the Duke are just kids!" Katara protested. "I'm not putting them in the line of fire nation soldiers. And Haru's already been in enough prisons because of me. Besides, this is about you doing your job and getting us some meat," she chided her lazy brother.

"Fine, fine," Sokka groaned. "I'll go in the morning; this time for real." He glanced at Suki. "You wanna come?"

"Oh no!" Katara cut in, stomping her brother's suggestion. "Like I'm going to let the two of you go off hunting. I'd be surprised if you returned with more than a handful of nuts, Sokka!"

"Besides Sokka," Suki put in, "I really need to get in some training. I've been in prison for so long, I'm pretty rusty. I could use some time away from you," she added, flicking his nose.

Katara nodded, proudly, but Sokka wrinkled his nose angrily and glared at his sister. "A handful of nuts?" he asked her. "Really? After all the hunting I've done for this group, you have so little faith in me?"

"I seem to remember making tons of meals from handfuls of nuts," the waterbender reminded her brother.

"Actually, Sokka," Aang put in, "that's kinda true." Sokka shot him a glare. "Not that there's anything wrong with nuts."

"Well, if you're worried about nuts," Hakoda put in, "why don't I go to?"

"Dad," Sokka whined, "I'm fifteen. I don't need you to go hunting with me."

"Fifteen?!" Hakoda exclaimed. "Since when?"

"Since like... less than a year ago," Sokka pointed out. "That's generally the way birthdays work."

"My Sokka, fifteen." Hakoda placed a hand on his brow. "They grow up so fast."

"Yeah," Chi Tzang grinned from across the fire. "I know the feeling."

Katara sighed as she took her father's empty bowl. "You have been gone for quite a while, Dad," she pointed out. "Sokka didn't even get to go ice dodging until we met up with Bato a while back."

"Oh, ice dodging!" Hakoda declared. "I can't believed I missed taking you!"

"Don't sweat it," Sokka sighed, turning away from his dad. "Aang, Katara and I did it with Bato."

"Oh, I remember that!" Aang grinned. "Sokka got us to waterbend the boat, and airbend the sails and we totally flew over this giant rock like... whoosh!" He grinned as he waved his hands in the air. "It was cool."

"What's ice dodging?" Zuko asked.

"Steering a boat through the ice burgs," Katara explained. "It's kind of, a coming of age thing in the Water Tribe."

"Ah, but you should have done that years ago!" Hakoda interrupted. "When you were thirteen. And you should have had other village boys with you, not your sister."

"Katara's fine," Sokka insisted, waving a nonchalant hand. "Besides, what other boys my age, Dad? There's really no one else my age in the village besides Katara. And she and Aang were great. Well, once Aang figured out what all the parts of the boat were anyway..." Aang flushed slightly.

"What about before you left the village?" Hakoda asked. "Did your Gran-Gran at least send you out for a survival hunt?"

"Who would I go with?" Sokka pointed out, sitting up. "Besides, Katara and I kind of left in a hurry. Aang had kind of been captured by..." Sokka voice trailed off. "Ah, the Fire Nation." Katara noticed Zuko's jaw clench as he turned away.

"What's a survival hunt?" Toph asked. "Sounds like fun."

"Well," Hakoda laughed, "it can be. But it's also hard work. Usually once a boy is over fifteen, he is ready to go out on his own, either as a soldier, a traveler, maybe get married, or just have his own place. Before we send our boys out to survive without us, the fathers usually take the boys out for a survival test, make sure they can live on their own. It's up to each set of fathers to pass down what they think is important to the boys, maybe teach them to hunt, build shelters, fight. Each test is different, depending on what boys go, and who takes them. My dad took Bato and I when we were younger since his dad was already off fighting. Ah, those were the days. We were fourteen, and your grandad nearly killed the both of us," he added to his kids. Then he smiled. "Your mother was so worried."

"Sounds kinda dangerous to be remembering so fondly," Zuko pointed out.

"Bah," Hakoda shook off the memories. "These things are always better in hindsight. I'm sure you have some coming of age rituals of your own in the fire nation."

Katara noticed Zuko's fingers twitch upwards towards his scar, but he quickly controlled them. She wondered if anyone else had noticed. "No," Zuko denied. "Not really."

"So," Hakoda cut into the awkward silence, "what do you say, Sokka? Wanna make this hunting trip your survival hunt?"

"What?" the boy asked, sitting up straight so fast he spilled some of his soup into his lap.

"I don't know, Dad," Katara put out, "we don't have much time..."

"Two days, Katara," Hakoda waved his daughter off. "Three tops. You need the meat anyway."

"But-"

"You sound like your Gran-Gran," he huffed. "Loosen up."

"And you sound like Sokka," Katara hissed. "You're both goofballs."

"Hey," Sokka cut in. "I can be serious."

"You saying I can't?" Hakoda challenged.

"Enough bickering," Aang cut in. "I think that the hunt idea sounds great. After all, Katara, Sokka missed a lot because of me. Now that your Dad's here, what's the problem?"

"Actually," Katara agreed, "that's true. I think you should go Sokka."

"Really?" he asked.

"Yeah, but only two days, got it? You guys better be back."

"Don't worry," Hakoda assured his daughter. "This trip's going to be great!" He glanced at his son, who was looking slightly less than enthused. "So, who do you want to take with you?" he asked.

"What?"

"Your trusted," Hakoda reminded him. "You have to have at least one other boy with you or it just wouldn't be right. Who was your trusted from ice dodging?"

"That was me," Aang perked up. "I got the mark of the trusted! But... I don't hunt. I don't even eat meat."

"Besides," Zuko put in, "Aang still has a lot of training to do."

"You got that right," Toph agreed. "Twinkle-toes still earthbends like a beginner."

"Hey," Aang protested. "Earth is my natural opposite, and-" he added as Zuko opened his mouth, "I just started fire."

"All the more reason why you need to practice," Katara agreed. "Want me to go with you, Sokka?" Katara offered.

"Eeeww, no!" Sokka denied. "Girls can't go on a survival hunt."

"Oh, so I was good enough for ice dodging, but not the survival hunt?"

Sokka glanced at his Dad, who shrugged, and then back at his sister. "Ah... yeah," he stated, obviously.

"Fine, then go by yourself," she huffed.

"What about Haru?" Hakoda brainstormed. "He's-"

"Even older than me," Sokka cut in. "And I'm already almost too old for a survival hunt." Katara raised an eyebrow at her brother's denouncement of the pretty earthbender. "Well, he is," Sokka insisted. "Come on, Katara, he has a mustache! Besides," he added to his father, "he's Katara's friend, not mine. Not that I don't like him, but this is _my_ survival hunt, so I don't want to take my sister's friends. That's kinda pathetic."

"I don't suppose my offering to come along would help at all?" Chi Tzang supplied.

Hakoda shook his head. "Thanks, but we kind of need someone close to Sokka's age. We're pushing it a little, but any older than seveteen and you're just pushing it... too... far..." Suddenly Hakoda's eyes snapped to Sokka's. "Did you just think what I just thought?" he asked his son.

Sokka's eyes widened. "Oh yeah!" Sokka realized.

"What?" Toph asked curiously.

The two sets of blue eyes turned simultaneously on the fire prince. "Zuko," the two said together.

Zuko swallowed hard under the gaze, choking his soup down. "What?" he asked, cautiously.

"How old are you?" Sokka wondered.

"...Seventeen..."

"Can you hunt, my boy?" Hakoda asked.

"...No..."

"What?" Sokka demanded. "You can't hunt?"

"Why would I need to hunt?" Zuko protested. "I'm the prince!"

Sokka spluttered for a second before finding words. "But... But what about that time when your sister wanted you as much as us? Weren't you in hiding and stuff? How'd you live if you couldn't hunt?"

Zuko glanced away. "Not... too well. Uncle and I worked where we could, begged other places... and... stole... when we had to."

"Why didn't you just cacth your own food?" Sokka continued, flabbergasted. "I've seen you with those swords! I'm sure you could have caught _something!"_

"Well we couldn't, okay?" Zuko growled at the other boy. "I can't hunt, so just forget about taking me on your stupid trip!"

"Actually," Hakoda cut in, "I think that's all the more reason to take you."

"What?" both boys gasped.

"Every good man should know how to hunt," Hakoda explained. "No matter where they live. Isn't that the point of the survival hunt?"

Sokka gaped at his father. "Yeah, but, he's doesn't even-"

But it seemed Hakoda had made up his mind. "No, Sokka, it doesn't matter if he is likely to need it in the future. If he does, it will be too late to come back and change his mind. Besides," the aged warrior added with a smile, "you already admitted you needed it before. And I'm a pretty good hunter, why not come with us?"

"No thanks," Zuko declined.

Sokka took a deep breath, as if considering. "You should come," he said, finally. "I'd rather have you than be by myself. And at least I'll have someone I'm better than, right?"

"Joy," Zuko rolled his eyes.

"At least think about it," Hakoda suggested. "Hunting's just a part of it. There more to the trip than just that. I'll tell you, I didn't feel ready to grow up until I learned how to be a man from my father. It made a big difference in my life."

"The last thing I need is more fathering," Zuko muttered, turning away from the fire. "I'm not going."

Sokka kicked a rock as Zuko stomped off. "Well, that went great," he huffed.

"Give him time," Hakoda replied. "We're not leaving until morning. Who knows, maybe he'll change his mind..."

* * *

"Where are you going?"

Katara blinked as she was caught leaving her bedroll and looked down at Aang. He stirred and nestled closer into Appa's warmth. "Zuko's not back," she gestured, indicating his empty sleeping roll. "You think he's considering going with Dad and Sokka?"

Aang shrugged. "Couldn't tell you," he yawned. "But I am glad the two of you are getting along now. Thanks, Katara. I know it wasn't easy for you."

"No," she agreed, "but it wasn't nearly as hard as I thought either. I think you were right, Aang. There might still be hope for him..."

"I'd like to think so," the young Avatar agreed, pushing himself halfway up. "Want me to come with you?"

Katara shook her head. "You've had a long day firebending. Get some sleep."

"All right," the boy yawned again. "Katara?"

"Yes?"

"...Nevermind..."

Katara's lips twisted at the boy's lack of disclosure, but she let it slide, kneeling quickly beside him and pressing a light kiss to the bald forehead where the arrow dropped. A peaceful smile crossed his face as she did. "Goodnight, Aang," she whispered, tucking him in, mother-like.

The boy was asleep before she rose.

Katara found Zuko up on one of the highest broken towers, the wind blowing though his clothes as he stood, suspended above the air as he leaned out over the edge. "What are you doing?" she asked.

He tensed as she spoke, and she realized he must not have known she was there. "Breathing," he finally said.

"All the way up here?"

"The air down there is... stifling."

Katara rubbed her arms in the evening chill. "Sorry about Dad and Sokka. They get excited easily. You don't have to listen to them if you don't want to-"

"It's not them." Katara waited, wondering what else it could be. She knew her family could just rub people the wrong way, and she had the feeling Zuko was a somewhat touchy person in his own way. But there was definitely something else eating at him. "It's this place," he finally explained. "All the destruction here. It's because of the Fire Nation."

Katara didn't know what to say. Unfortunately, that was true. "I..."

"I just... I don't know if what I'm doing is right. I mean, I know it's right to be here, to help the Avatar, but... Everything's confusing right now." He finally turned to glance back at her. "Your dad wants me to be a man. What kind of man leaves his girlfriend a captive in the hands of the enemy?"

"You mean Mai?" Katara realized, following his train of thought. "She made that choice herself. You didn't betray her, or fail her." He didn't answer, and Katara was afraid she'd misunderstood, despite the way his tone of voice had made her so sure he felt like he was responsible. "That's what you meant, right? Mai? She's your girlfriend?"

"I... I don't know anymore..."

Katara shifted her weight on her feet. Zuko was looking at her in that way that scared her again. He seemed unstable at times like those, but not nearly as unsure as his words made him. His golden eyes glowed in a way that both enchanted her, and frightened her.

Finally, he looked away, and Katara felt herself breath again. "Usually, at times like these, I talk to my Uncle. But I betrayed him too." He sighed, dropping to sit on the stone edge, one foot dangling over the drop. "I seem to do that a lot," he admitted. "And now, I don't know what I'm doing..."

Katara shook herself. _I told myself I'd try, _she reminded herself resolutely. _That's what giving him the necklace meant. I'll try to understand him... _"I think you should go."

"What?" Zuko asked.

"I think you should go with Dad and Sokka."

"But... what about Aang?" Zuko counted. "He needs training. We're running out of time."

"You can't train anyone well if you're that unsure of yourself," Katara insisted. "Trust me, I know. Even I had trouble training Aang when I doubted myself. But... a lot of good men in the Water Tribe have gone on this great hunt and come out better for it. I'm not saying anything could replace your uncle, but... maybe it would help you figure all this out."

Zuko rubbed his neck. "At the least I guess it would get me out of this air temple for a bit..."

"Good," Katara smiled. "Sokka could use a friend his age. And he could really use this time with Dad. He missed out on more than he lets on. And time with our father is rare for us.

"I'll bet."

"Plus, it'll give me time to catch up on healing Aang's burns. I swear, he gets a new one every day."

A small smile crossed Zuko's lips. "That's firebending for you. And we're going a very fast pace."

"That's just like Aang," she agreed, remembering what a natural the boy was at waterbending. Zuko's face fell as she smiled though. "What?"

He shook his head. "Nothing." His eyes were simmering now, like embers.

Once again she was forced to let this annoying word slide. "Well, it's up to you," she concluded, turning to go. "Dad said they're leaving at the crack of dawn, so-"

Her words cut off, sticking squarely in her throat as he caught her wrist, thick fingers closing around her arm. She swallowed hard around the lump growing in her throat as she felt her hair rush around her. Her heart was pounding loudly in her ears.

"Stay."

The voice was so quiet she almost didn't hear it, so commanding she couldn't ignore it, and so raw she couldn't deny it. "Zuko, I-"

"Just for a bit."

She nodded, and turned back towards him. As she reached down to free herself from his grasp, he glanced at their hands, as if realizing for the first time he had held her, and flushed as he quickly released her with a muttered apology. _He's acting strange, _she thought, as she took a seat beside him. _Or maybe I just don't know him at all..._

They sat in silence for a while, the night air streaming up the cliff face and whistling through the stone buildings. Zuko was inches from her, but he seemed far away, in a world so different from hers she wondered if she could ever see what he did. His eyes stared numbly out across the expanse, his arm resting across his raised knee as he thought. _It's cold, _Katara thought with a shiver. _I wonder how long he wants me to stay..._

But as she shifted to warm herself, he seemed to notice her discomfort. "What's wrong?"

"It's a bit cold," she told him. "Didn't you notice?"

"I thought you came from a frozen land," Zuko teased quietly. "How can you be cold in a little wind?"

"We dress warmly back home," Katara protested. "Besides, it's been so hot lately... I'm growing accustomed to it, I guess..."

They sat for another moment, Katara, hugging her legs to herself to keep warm. Then, without a word, Zuko reached out and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. At first she tensed, but he wasn't looking at her, still staring away from her. But his eyes weren't distant any more. Instead, there was a warm color in his cheeks. He pulled her closer, and she realized, suddenly, how warm he was. "Better?" he asked.

_I suppose that depends on your definition of the word, _she considered, but she only nodded against his shoulder. _He is warm, _she recognized. _And he's trying. He wants to be good, I can tell. But can someone raised with so much evil really change so easily? _She found herself staring at the scar on his face, and wondering, again, if she could ever heal it.

_I bet I could, _she concluded. _It would take time, but I could do it... He could be healed, I know it._

As she watched his breathing, and thought to herself, more and more slowly, her eyes grew heavy. She could feel his chest rising beneath her, and see a small breath of steam appear from his lips with each exhale, though the cold was no where near enough to make hers mist. He seemed to grow warmer with each heavy breath, and she felt herself subconsciously drawing near him as her eyelids drooped. Eventually, she didn't see his breaths any more, just darkness, but she could still feel them as his chest rose and fell beneath her, as sleep overtook her.

* * *

Zuko strode the last couple steps across the floor to Katara's sleeping mat, careful not to wake anyone as he did. Her sleeping form stirred slightly in his arms as he knelt and lay her slight weight into the warm bed. Her brows drew as she left the heat of his body, and he slowly removed his arms from where they cradled her. As she relaxed into the bed, he found himself staring helplessly at her face. He brushed a hair loop off her cheek, almost able to see the bright blue eye behind the gently closed lid. Her lips stirred slightly as she whispered inaudibly and the movement tugged at Zuko.

Before he knew it he was leaning towards her, images of those lips against his burning in his mind. Scant inches from contact, he caught himself, his body coming to a static halt. His hair fell around his face, and his breathing elevated as he struggled against the strong desire to finish the movement.

Warm breath fell across his face as she whispered again. But now the breath seemed to have a word. Was it just his imagination, or did each muttered exhale sound like "Aang..."

Zuko sighed, and summoned every piece of willpower within him to leave the ruined mood. He pushed to his feet and strode over to the fountain in the center of the plaza. After a moment, he dunked his whole head right in, letting the cold water run down his face, his body rigid and awake with the shock.

Shaking out his limbs, he heated his body with a few fire breaths, evaporating the water in sheets of steam off his body. He could sense the sun rising behind him and turned to watch it. Moments later, he heard the sounds of Hakoda and Sokka stirring. They were rolling out of beds and reaching for packs. They looked up at him, already awake and standing above them. "You're up early," Hakoda acknowledged.

"Yeah," Zuko agreed. "I'm coming with you."


	18. Chapter 18:To Be a Man

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: hey, sorry it took so long to get out - again! i know, not like us. trombe's still moving, and i've been working on my comicon costume. my friend and i are going to be kyoshi warriors, my sister is going to be suki, and, get this, my mom is going to be avatar kyoshi. sweet, huh? i love it that my family is into avatar...  
_

**Trombe: Except Chelsea. She's the reason for the term bi-**

_artsyelric: hey! not in front of the readers! _

**Trombe: Just saying.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 18: To Be A Man  
**

* * *

"How far are we going?" Zuko asked, glancing up at the sun. "It's already midday."

"Yeah Dad," Sokka agreed. "Katara said we only have two days."

"I told her three tops," Hakoda replied forwardly.

"What?!" Sokka protested. "Oh wait. I remember that." He rubbed his chin. "Good one! Now when we spend three days out here, Katara can't complain! Everyone at dinner last night heard you. Haha!"

"Fine, three days," Zuko accepted, "but aren't we still going a little far? We've been walking all morning."

"You tired already?" Hakoda asked.

"No," Zuko ground his teeth. "But it doesn't make sense to go very far. We have to carry all the meat back, right? And we're still on limited time to catch it-"

"Stop worrying," Hakoda waved him off. "First rule about our survival hunt; what I say goes."

Sokka made a choking sound. "But Dad, what if-"

"No buts," Hakoda cut off. "Second rule of our hunt is, no bending."

"What?!" Zuko demanded.

"Well, that one I don't mind," Sokka agreed.

"But why not?" Zuko demanded. "Just because neither of you can-"

"Even among the waterbenders back home that's the rule," Hakoda declared, unyielding. "This trip is about the basics, how to be a good man. We'll learn how to hunt, and fish and build. We'll learn to read stars, and fight-"

"But I know how to fight!" Both boys yelled in unison.

"Maybe so, but we'll also learn what makes a good man. It's just as important to be able to do those all those things without bending, without our favorite weapons even, with just what's at our fingertips, because we never know where our lives will take us. There will be times when you can't bend. Have you considered that?"

"Of course," Zuko replied, surly. "Why do you think I have these?" he asked, indicating the dao swords strapped on his back, the blades gleaming as he unsheated them. "There have been plenty of times I couldn't bend, and I still got by."

"Then you get what I'm saying," Hakoda concluded.

Zuko growled as he returned the blades to his shoulders. "Fine, no firebending. So, are you going to tell us why in the world we're still walking?"

"Well," Hakoda asked, "do you still know where you are?"

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked. "We're on this survival thing with you."

"No, no. I mean, do you know how to get back to the air temple from here?"

Zuko glanced around. "Isn't it that way?" he asked, pointing behind them.

Hakoda raised an eyebrow as Sokka smothered a laugh. "Are you sure?" the older warrior asked.

"Well, that's back the way we came..."

"Sokka?" Hakoda asked.

"Dad's been turning slightly as we came, so the way back is roughly... that way," Sokka deduced, pointing off towards their left.

"How do you know that?" Zuko demanded. "It's not like when you're at sea and have the sun to follow. Since we got into these thick trees, I can't even tell what way we're going!"

"Well?" Sokka asked. "Was I right Dad?"

"Yes," Hakoda replied. "Very good. How'd you know?"

"The bark on the trees," Sokka gestured.

"Good call," Hakoda complimented him. "And for your reward..."

Sokka cried out as Hakoda grabbed him about the shoulders and spun him around. "Dad! What are you doing?" he cried out as Hakoda wrapped a blindfold around his eyes. "I can't see!"

"Exactly," his father replied, pulling the tie tight. He waved a hand in front of Sokka's eyes and when the boy didn't respond, he pushed his son towards the bewildered Zuko, who righted him. "The prince here is already lost, so he doesn't need the blindfold. You, on the other hand, can't take that off until you're good and lost yourself."

"But... What... Why... Ah man!" Sokka stammered.

"Now, you brought Zuko here along as your trusted. So trust him and keep up." Hakoda started off as Zuko stumbled after him.

"Hey... hey!" Sokka called. "Zuko!"

Zuko sighed, and grabbed the younger boy's hand, letting Sokka grab his pack. "Keep up," he echoed his elder.

"This is stupid!" Sokka whined, as the group got more and more lost.

* * *

Sokka spun around as the blindfold came off. "Where are we?" he asked.

"Lost," Zuko growled, shaking the previously blind boy's hands off his shoulders.

"This is where we'll camp tonight," Hakoda informed his son, as he dropped his pack to the ground. "You have the rest of the afternoon and tomorrow morning to hunt. Come noon, we start back - assuming you know how to get back by then."

"But, how will we know that?" Sokka demanded, his voice cracking. "You blindfolded me!"

"Then I don't think we'll be making your sister's deadline..." Hakoda mused. "I wonder what she'll do to you when you miss it."

Zuko paled slightly as Sokka whined a plaintive, "but Dad!"

"Fine," Hokda acquiesced, "you want to know something about our location? This forest is known for it's saber-toothed moose-lions. One of those should be plenty of meat to please the entire gang. And if we catch it today, we'll have time to skin and clean it so we can bring it home."

"Saber-toothed moose-lions?" Zuko asked, imagining the beast.

"How are we going to hunt them?" Sokka pointed out. "We don't have any weapons but our swords."

"Then you better start looking for a good stick," Hakoda replied. "I brought arrow-heads, since we're on a time crunch, so I won't force you to make those."

"Spears then?" Sokka concluded.

"Exactly," his father agreed.

"You... are going to be hunting with us, right?" Sokka inquired. "I mean... ah... saber-toothed moose-lions are, um... pretty big."

"Then you might want to start making a _big_ spear."

Sokka sighed exasperatedly and started off into the trees, pulling out his machete and starting to hack at branches. Zuko glanced awkwardly at Hakoda before starting after the younger warrior. He caught up to Sokka as the boy released a branch, which snapped up into the tree he'd pulled it from with a rustle. "Dad's getting really into this," Sokka muttered as Zuko matched his stride. "If I didn't know better, I'd swear he was trying to kill us." Zuko raised an eyebrow in disapproving silence. "Maybe this trip wasn't the best idea."

"You're saying that _now?" _the prince gaped.

"Ah!" Sokka growled, "would you at least _look _for a stick?"

Zuko bent over a pucked a scrawny branch up off the ground, his face devoud of any emotion.

Sokka's eye twitched. "I meant a REAL stick!" he shouted, stomping off.

"Hey!" Zuko called after his back. "Don't take it out on me just because your girlfriend's not here."

"What?" Sokka demanded, spinning back.

"You think I enjoy coming out into this accursed wilderness and being asked to kill giant, ferocious animals with sticks? This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever done! But at least I'm trying."

Sokka, who had been growing progressively redder in the face throughout Zuko's sentence, blanched slightly as his last few words sunk in. He snorted, and turned back to his branch search. Zuko followed silently for a few moments before Sokka finally answered. "You want something straight, and long," the boy defined. "Something that won't break under pressure. We can always carve it down a bit it it's too big. And something from a living tree is often a better choice - dry wood is more likely to snap. Have you used spears before?"

"Of course," Zuko replied. "It's a part of basic training when I was... you know... back home... Anyway, spear fighting was covered; but I don't think hunting is going to be the same."

"No," Sokka admitted. "But that training will help. For instance, at least you know what a spear should feel like. When you pick the word to make yours, hold it like it was the spear, and make sure it's the right length and weight for you." He hacked off a branch as he spoke, and hefted it, testing it out. "This one's too long for me." He tossed it to the prince. "Try it."

"It's too heavy," Zuko commented, as it lifted it. "Slightly twisted, and too wide for the spears I'm used too."

Sokka slid his hands along another branch, squinting down. "We'll shave off the edges, until it's thin and straight. Picture it that way."

Zuko sighed, as he tried to see the stick that way, imagine it carved down, with a spearhead attached. Eventually, he could almost see it as a spear.

"I got mine," Sokka declared, slinging a branch over his shoulder. "Let's get back to camp. We need to make these fast if we're going to do any hunting today."

Back at camp, Sokka and Zuko shaved at their sticks with a carving stone until they were long, straight, and strong. When Zuko could put his through an attack pattern he'd learned and feel comfortable with the balance, he finally gave it a rest. Hokda nodded at Zuko as the boy finished attaching the spear head, and Zuko felt his face flush slightly. The man's nod had the personal kind of approval he had only ever received from Uncle. It was unnerving, and slightly uncomfortable, to be acknowledged by another man.

"You seem to know some forms," Hakoda offered, noticing Zuko's uncomfortable response. "You're not half bad."

"Thanks, but," Zuko declined, "spears were never my thing."

"A good warrior learns to fight with whatever is near," Hakoda reminded Zuko, reaching out for his spear. As Zuko surrendered it, he realized how right it looked with Hakoda, like how how his dao blades felt in his own hands. It was the mark of a master fighter to be that comfortable with their chosen weapon. "While the spear is not the same as the sword, in many ways it is similiar. Instead of slicing you learn to thrust and pierce the foe from a distance but it follows the same principle because it is still you, the individual, who brings out its full potential. And a spear is quite versatile; long," he demonstrated, thrusting it forward with his whole arm to grain great distance, "sharp," he added, swinging the blade point across the grass and lobbing off the tips of the swaying stems, "and strong," he concluded, swinging it like a quarterstaff, and bringing it to rest butt down at Zuko's feet. "If you recognize all its aspects, the spear will come alive to you the same way your swords do."

"Like an extension of you arm, right Dad?" Sokka chimed in.

"A giant, sharp pointy arm," Hakoda agreed with a grin. "But spear fighting is much different than hunting. For the hunt, length will be your greatest asset, but your life will depend on the strength."

"Explain," Zuko requested, taking the spear from Hakoda.

And so Hakoda taught the boys the basics, all he could fit into an hour. How to hold the spear to gain the most length, when to brace it on something, and where not to let it strike you in backlash. The difference between spear fighting and hunting, and how much length they need to gore a huge animal coming towards them, as well as when and where to strike. After an hour, the sun was just starting to get low in the sky, and Zuko estimated there were only three or four hours of daylight left.

"Be back in two hours," Hakoda told the boys. "There are tracks all around here from a saber-toothed moose-lion, and unless I miss my guess, you'll probably find it not to far into the forest in that direction," he pointed, refraining from giving Sokka any navigational hints. "Good luck," he added, with a smile.

Zuko glanced at Sokka, and the boy gulped, then nodded.

The prince was fairly impressed with Sokka's tracking skills. Certainly, Zuko had seen much better trackers, but he had never actually w_atched _them track something. Usually he had just demanded they do it faster. Watching Sokka was perplexing and impressive. The boy could see marks Zuko didn't even recognize when Sokka defined them, and even when Zuko could see the saber-toothed moose-lion tracks, there was now way he could have guessed which way the beast was headed. But Sokka read snapped twigs, dusty paw prints, and and even droppings like they were simpler than a map. Zuko could only follow in awe, and hope that Sokka's proficiency in tracking would prove enough to get them home.

"Okay," Sokka finally whispered, "I think it's just up ahead here, probably in this clearing."

"What is?" Zuko asked.

"Shhh!" the boy hissed. "A cave," he replied.

"Cave?" Zuko repeated. "I thought we were looking for the moose-lion?"

"Which," Sokka groaned, "will probably either be in it's den, or will return to it soon!" The boy held up a hand suddenly, peering sideways around a bush. "Wait, look," he whispered, eying and opening in the rock. "There, do you see?"

"What?" Golden eyes peered through the bush, following the gaze of the blue pair. "In the cave?"

"Yeah, watch closely," the warrior breathed, barely making a sound.

Zuko's eyes narrowed as he honed in on the darkness. Then, suddenly, the shadows moved. A huge form was suddenly clear to the prince, just inside the cover of the rock. "It's huge," he gasped.

"Well, duh," Sokka agreed, hefting his spear in his hands. "I hate saber-toothed moose-lions. Why do you think I made this so long?"

Zuko glanced at Sokka's spear, wishing now that his were longer too. "So, what do we do?" he asked.

"I don't know," the younger hunter hissed back. "I've never hunted anything this big before!"

"Well, what do you do when you hunt something smaller?" the prince reasoned.

"Usually, you make a noise or something on one side to scare the creature, then calculate where it's likely to run, and where it's best to attack it from, and then you wait for it to run straight towards you."

Zuko rubbed his chin. "Your dad showed us how to set up for a charge, and use it's weight against it." He breathed. "All right. The best place to attack is just there, to our left. The trees look thick, so he won't see you, but-"

He trailed off as Sokka shook his head. "There's no way that the moose-lion wouldn't run into such thick vegetation. I think just here, to our right, would be better. It's got tall grass, so I can duck in that, and the dirt is hard and dry, so I'll bet I can get good footing. Plus," he added, licking a finger and holding it up to feel the air, "the wind is coming towards us. That's good, because it won't carry our smell towards the moose-lion, as long as we stay downwind of it."

"All right, fine," Zuko agreed in hushed tones. "Then I'll go off to the left here, and when it comes out of the cave, I'll make a bunch of noise and scare it towards you."

"Wait," Sokka wondered, "how come I have to be the one stab the charging beast? Why can't I be the one to scare it?"

"Because," Zuko concluded, "you have the longer spear."

A grumbling Sokka went to take his place among the grass.

Zuko went and settled himself down in the shade of a tree, watching the hulking shadow like an enemy. His immediate plan to frighten the beast was fire - all animals were scared of that. But then he snorted angrily to himself as he remembered Hakoda's commandment not to fire bend. Muttering angrily to himself, he settled for waving his spear and yelling. That scared most animals away from human places. He remembered refugees doing it to chase platypus-bears away from their tents.

As the moose-lion finally emerged from its cave-like den, Zuko felt his muscles flex as he struggled to remain completely still. He had to wait and make sure it was far enough from the entrance to its home to run towards Sokka and not just back into the cliff face. Tightening his fist around his spear, he waited for it to come a few steps closers. _Remember, _he chanted to himself, _it's more scared of me than I am of it. It's more scared of me than I am of it... Oh spirits, it's huge..._

The saber-toothed moose-lion, now clearly visible in the daylight, was obviously well named. It had the head of a moose, with a bearded, almost mane-like tuft around its neck. Two great, saber teeth hung viciously from its maw, and a gigantic pair of antlers protruded from behind its swiveling ears. Its nostrils flared as it tested the wind, and Zuko knew it could sense danger nearby. _It's more scared of me than I am of it, _he reminded himself again, as it flicked its long, lion like tail.

Behind the beast, he saw a flash of light of Sokka's spear, signaling that he was ready. Zuko breathed a small gust of flame (not with the intention of breaking Hakoda's rule, more in a natural sense of preparing himself for something steeling), and stood with a roar he hoped wasn't high pitched.

The moose-lion's head spun as Zuko waved his spear above his head, hooting and hollering and running right at the animal, as intimidatingly as he could manage. Though his heart was pumping in his chest, he felt a surge of adrenaline as the creature retreated a step towards Sokka. _This is actually going to work!_

But then the beast changed its mind. Turning back to the oncoming fire prince, it scratched the ground with a clawed paw, and snorted. Zuko's charged faltered slightly as it did, and he stopped all together as the moose-lion bellowed and charged, not towards the waiting Sokka, but towards the onrushing Zuko.

His battle cry turned into a scream as the creature charged towards him, and he dived out of the way of the lowered antlers at the last second. "What now, smart guy!" he shouted at his partner, as the moose lion skidded to a stop and lined up for a second charge.

"It must be trying to protect its home!" Sokka calculated, sticking his head up out of the grass. "Look out, here it comes!"

"What do I do?" Zuko demanded of the water tribe boy as the moose-lion began another charge towards him.

"Your spear!" Sokka called. "Use your spear! Kill it!"

Zuko dropped his back foot to brace himself like Hakoda had shown them, and lifted his spear up, trying to hold the tip steadily pointed towards the charging monster's heart. But with each inch closer it came, his courage slipped a little more. As the moose-lion neared, his will broke completely and he dived out of the way with a shout.

"What are you doing?" Sokka cried loudly. "You had him!"

"This is insane!" Zuko shouted back angrily.

But the moose-lion's head had turned towards Sokka as the boy rose completely out of the grass, waving his own spear and yelling at Zuko. Recognizing a new threat, the gigantic attacker charged toward the shouting teenager. Sokka threw his arms up and began running with a crazed scream.

"Oh, really good!" Zuko called to him. "You didn't even _try _and kill it!"

"I! Hate! Moose Lions!" Sokka hollered as the struggled up a tree, jumping higher to escape the sharp fangs. With a cry, he thrust his spear towards it, but as he did, his feet slipped and the branch he was on cracked. The spear slipped from his grasp as he struggled to pull himself back into the tree. "Zuko!"

Recognizing his friend's predicament, the prince decided the time for teasing was later, and he hefted his own spear over his shoulder. Taking aim, he let fly, and the spear struck the beast in the back flank. It let out a roar as the thick skin deflected the slightly angled through, scratching the moose-lions muscled hips, but not sticking. The moose-lion turned, anger fiery in its eyes, and turned its aggression back on the prince. "Oh no," Zuko moaned, turning to run from it.

"A tree, Zuko!" he heard Sokka shout, as the boy waved his arms frantically. "Climb a tree!"

Just as the moose lion's footsteps were catching up with him, Zuko finally saw a low hanging branch, and managed to catch it with a good grip. The branch dipped as he swung up under it, and the moose-lion charged past, mere inches behind the fleeing prince. Zuko pulled himself up two more stronger branches as the fanged creature turned and placed it front paws on the trunk of the tree, jumping and scratching in a snapping attempt the reach the stranded firebender. "What now, genius?" he asked with dry sarcarsm.

The boy shrugged. "Wait for it to go away?" he recommended, as the moose-lion dashed back and forth, foaming at the mouth, as it snapped at the two pinned boys. "It has to get bored sometime..."

Zuko's cry of frustration could have been heard from Sozen's Comet.

* * *

Zuko collapsed on the bed, completely worn out. Not even the sticks and stones poking him through the thick, water-tribe sleeping bag he'd been forced to borrow from Katara could keep him awake. The day had been rotten, with the saber-toothed moose-lion catastrophe just the first mistake on an entire evening of failures.

After waiting almost an hour, Zuko had decided the moose-lion was never just going to 'go away', so he'd finally broken his truce with Hakoda and proceeded to blow fire at it until it ran off with its tail between its legs. Sokka hadn't told his Dad about Zuko's solution, but somehow Zuko guiltily thought the older warrior knew. Either way, Hakoda hadn't been happy that they were almost twenty minutes late, though apparently he had never actually expected them to kill a moose-lion, and claimed he just wanted them to have the experience. At that point, the elder man had already snagged himself a rabbit-mole, and had water boiling over a fire for stew. Zuko's stomach rumbled again just remembering it. All he'd had to eat that day was the wretched jerky the water tribe family claimed was from seals of some kind. He was starving.

But, unfortunately, the seasoned hunter had been unwilling to share his catch, and told the boys that rabbit-mole hunting would seem a breeze in comparison to saber-toothed moose-lion. But, despite Hakoda's predictions, Zuko had had no more luck with the rabbit-moles than the moose lion, though, admittedly, the rabbit-moles hadn't chased him up a tree. The wretched things were just so quick! Sokka even had troubles, and had let the first two get away from him, but he caught his third one. Zuko had spent the rest of the day light chasing the infernal little monsters across the forest floor, only to have them dive, at the last second, into little earthen holes, their long, pointy ears disappearing from the hungry hunter's sight. No matter how he tried to imitate the others, the fluffy speeders always heard him before he was close enough to kill one, and took off. It was one of the most frustrating things Zuko had ever done. He was growing angry again just thinking about his failure.

"Errr... Stupid rabbit-moles," he growled, burring his head in the sleeping bag as his stomach rumbled again. "Stupid hunting trip. This whole thing is... impossible!"

Even though Sokka had shared his meet (they were in this together, as Hakoda had pointed out) neither boy was near full enough, and Zuko still had no idea how to get back to the air temple. _Katara's going to kill us. _Then, he realized, that was the first time he'd thought about the blue-eyed waterbender all day. _Well, at least there's that..._

But all positive thought were immediately gone again as Sokka snorted and rolled over in his sleep, throwing a careless arm across Zuko as he snored loudly. Steam gushed from the prince as he snarled. "I hate this trip!!"

* * *

The next morning found Zuko too early, especially considering he hadn't slept at all the night before they'd left. His temper was still horrible, though now he was grumpy instead of fuming, and Sokka and Hakoda's warped sense of humor rubbed annoyingly against him until his pointed comments and glower drowned out their fun too.

The plan for the day was to hike for a few hours and try and get a good way back to the temple, then stop somewhere and make camp, and spend the rest of the afternoon in another joyous hunting session, with the goal of finding _some _food to bring home to the hungry whiners back at the air temple. As Zuko hefted his pack, with the thick, water tribe sleeping bag tied to the bottom of it, he realized he was glad they were lost and wouldn't make it back today. With his temper the way it was, if he saw Katara now, he just might loose all his grip on sanity and attempt to kill the waterbender at her first frustrating comment.

Why it was all coming back to her, he didn't know, but somehow it always did. She was the one who had wanted the food, after all. Did she have any idea how hard hunting actually _was? _And, worst of all, though he had come on this trip to get away from her, the prince's mind was still filled with thought of the absent, blue-eyed bender. He had become so accustomed to having her around, that _not _having her near almost made him think of her more. Even his dreams had been filled with her, strange, twisted dreams they were too, most likely caused by the uncomfortable rocks digging into him all night from the cold earth beneath his bag, or maybe it was because in the back of his mind he knew it was _her _bag Sokka had lent him for the trip, which made it almost like he was sleeping in her bed. Whatever the reason, dreaming of kissing a sleeping Katara while Mai watched and shouted that he'd betrayed her had made his night only worse, especially when the dream Katara woke up and somehow he was at the butt end of both girl's wrath.

Yes indeed, this dream was something he was definitely going to take with him to his grave.

Now, stiff, cold, sore, and still sleepless, he trudged along after the blue-clad men, his own eyes red and sore. "Where are we going?" he finally asked Sokka.

"Haha, I'm glad you ask," the boy declared, as if he'd been waiting for someone to. "You see, I figure our temple was in a cliff face that formed a valley, right? So that means it is in the mountains. Which, it was, if I remember correctly from walking, flying there, and the maps. Therefore, I followed the sound of water to the river, and now we're following it."

"What does that have to do with the mountains?" Zuko asked, almost disinterested already.

"That's the best part," Sokka chortled. "Mountains, right? So that means, the water must flow downhill, away from the mountains. So, if we find the river, which we have, and then we follow it upstream, right, we'll eventually come to the crevasse where the air temple is hidden."

"How do you know the river flows there?" Zuko asked.

"Remember the waterfall on the far east side of it?" Sokka asked. "That's what supplies water to the fountains and stuff around there. If it was brought in manually when the temple was made, the waterworks would have died out along with the monks, decades ago. But because it's fueled naturally by the river, there's still running water there. That means that the river should lead us back to the temple."

"One question then," Zuko agreed, impressed with the warrior's deductions, despite his own surly state. "How do you know we aren't further uphill from the temple now? I seemed to remember most of this was mountain-like region. Who's to say we aren't currently higher than temple and should be following the river downhill?" Sokka opened his mouth, then hesitated. "Well?" Zuko prompted.

"Umm... Instinct?" the boy offered.

"Ah!" Zuko growled. "I've heard stories about _your _instinct."

"Hey!" Sokka protested. "Okay, okay, all right. I got it." Zuko raised an eyebrow expectantly. "Look, the crevasse of the temple runs east and west, right?"

"Yeah," Zuko remembered.

"And the river is adjacent to it, so it runs north and south then."

"I'm following."

"So... we didn't cross over the crevasse to the north side of the air temple, so we must be-"

"South of it then," Zuko concluded.

"Right," Sokka agreed. "And that way is north," he added, pointing ahead of them.

"How do you know?" Zuko asked.

"The moss on the trees, the sun rising on our right, and the north star last night," Sokka listed.

"Oh. Right."

"So we have to go this way, north, to get back to the temple, which, I might add, is upstream."

Zuko and Sokka turned as clapping suddenly echoed from behind them. Hakoda applauded slowly. "Very good reasoning, my boy," he admitted. "Now, can you tell me how you're so sure this is the same river that flows to the air temple?"

Sokka face blanched, but for once Zuko was pleased to have an answer. "Don't worry," he assured the boy. "I've flown over this area three times now, between following you guys, and going back and forth the Boiling Rock. Memorizing the layout of the land is something I kind of do naturally, so I'm sure that there is only one river in this area. There may be small streams not visible from the balloon, but there was only one river of this size, and you were right, it flows right up to the air temple."

"Way'ta go, Zuko!" Sokka congratulated him.

"However, I thought it was flowing downhill when it reached the cliff. That's why I asked if were supposed to be going downstream."

Sokka scratched his head. "Hey, you're right," he agreed. "How can there be a waterfall into that pitfall of a crevasse if it's upstream of where we are now? That makes no sense..."

"Boys," Hakoda asked. "Might it be because of that?"

Sokka's eyes widened beside Zuko as they stepped out of the trees and into a clearing, surrounding a crystal lake. It glistened, still and cold, and a branch or water flowed out of the lake and downstream, the way they had come. Another stream of water poured into it from the opposite end of the lake as the boys, streaming from tones of melted snow on the mountain above it combined with a bubbling area that meant an underground spring. To their left a third section of river streamed away, down the hill, and most likely toward the air temple.

"It's beautiful," Sokka declared.

"And it explains why it all looked like one river from the sky," Zuko surmised. "The water is underground up there for the most part, and it pools here, then splits into two rivers, flowing in opposite directions."

"Hey," Hakoda called from the bank where he was already shirtless, "think later boys! Right now, I'm gonna take me a swim!"

Sokka grinned as he slipped his pack off, hopping as he pulled off his shoes. "A swim?" Zuko asked. "Do we really have time for that?"

"Hurry up!" Hakoda called, splashing water up at the boys.

"Oh, that does it, Dad!" Sokka hollered, stripping down to his loincloth and running for the lake. "Tsunami Splash!" he shouted, hugging his legs to his chest and creating the biggest wave he could.

"Hey!" Zuko shouted as he was drenched with the icy water.

"Ahh!" Sokka screamed as he emerged. "Cold!" He darted out of the water and bounced up and down on shore, hoping from foot to foot.

"You baby!" Hakoda called, lounging in the water. "Stop dripping on my clothes! I want dry pants when I get out, you hear me, kid? Now get back in here!"

"Come on, Zuko!" Sokka called as he wadded back into the clear water. "It's actually really nice when you get used to it! And it's soo hot here that the cool feels... ah... great..."

"No thank you," Zuko huffed, dropping his pack.

"Come on, spoil sport," Hakoda teased, shooting water at Zuko from his fists. "I'm in charge of the schedule, and I say we have an hour to waste now."

"Yeah," Sokka agreed. "We've been walking all morning! It's definitely break time. So get in."

"Sorry," Zuko denied, "water's just not my... element."

Hakoda lifted a lock of hair out of his eyes. "What next, prince?" he asked. "Gonna tell us you can't swim?"

Zuko felt the barely suppressed frustration stir again. "Of course I can swim," he hissed. "I wouldn't have captained a ship for half my life if I couldn't, now, would I?"

"You'd be surprised," Sokka admitted. "I've met a bunch of Fire Nation captains who can't swim."

"Me too," Hakoda agreed.

"They're great," Sokka grinned. "Just knock 'em off the boat and watch 'em flop around! It's a laugh."

"I'm sure it is," Zuko deadpanned.

"Oh, come off it!" the blue-eyed boy waved off Zuko's menace. "Stop being such a stiff! Screw Katara! Spit in the face of authority and break some rules!"

Zuko wasn't sure how he felt about spitting in authority's face. Again. One scar was enough for him.

"Look," Hakoda put in, "if you're going to spend this whole trip moping around then you're totally missing the point. This is an experience; so get off your rear and experience it! If you don't, it's nobody's loss but yours."

"But Katara-"

"Enough about Katara," the father cut him off. "I think I can handle my own daughter, so you stop worrying about our schedule and let me do that. It's my job. Your job is to do what I say, and I say, swim. Katara can yell at me all she wants when we're late," he added sinking back into the water. "So what'll it be, boy?" he called, his ears still covered in water as floated on his back. "You gonna sit up there and mope all day, or you comin' in?"

Zuko sighed. _I came on this trip to get away from all that stress and frustration, _he reminded himself. _Why am I _still _thinking about her now?_

Determined to get at at least some peace on the trip, Zuko gave in. Pulling off his own shirt, he joined the two frolicking idiots in the cold water.

"All right, Zuko!" Sokka congratulated him. "Way to loosen up! And to think, all the time you were chasing us, I thought you were such a prick."

"Thanks," the prince bit back sarcastically, splashing the Water Tribe boy in the face as he did. "When Katara lays into us, I'm telling her it's your fault." Sokka's face blanched. "So, until then, I just don't care any more. You two can dig your own graves."

"Way to go, kid," Hakoda smiled, floating past. "Way to go."

* * *

The trip was finally starting to turn around. After the swim, they went fishing, and while Zuko was sure he wouldn't catch anything, he was shocked when he pole tried to rip itself out of his hands. Hakoda's advice on bait and a good fishing spot had paid off, along with some patience he normally didn't exercise. When he managed to pull in the fish, he found it was bigger than either of the two Sokka had already caught. "See?" Hakoda offered. "You're not a complete waste."

"Is that a compliment?" Zuko inquired.

"Man, that fish is the biggest I've seen since the North Pole!" Sokka declared. "No, for real! They catch huge fish there! Have you seen it, Dad? The waterbenders just pull giant fish up out of the water, long ones, with swords for noses!"

"I'd believe it," Hakoda agreed. "But I don't really think any of the fish we caught here today compare with those behemoths," his father measured.

"Fine, just ruin my fun," Sokka grumped.

"Ah, clam up," the older man taunted. "You're just hungry, and your eyes have always been bigger than your mouth."

"I'll tell you what," Zuko agreed, "I can't wait to eat this fish. I am definitely hungry."

"Well then boys, let's get to skinning and cleaning!" Zuko's face blanched as he watched Hakoda demonstrate by pulling the guts from his own fish. "Nothing ever tastes better than something you caught and cooked with your own hands, I can tell you that much," he added. "Well, grab a knife!"

"That's disgusting," Zuko growled.

"That's fishing," the aged warrior corrected.

But Zuko wasn't a squeamish person, so despite his original aversion, he buckled down and cleaned his fish in no time. Hunger gnawed at his stomach as he watched a dripping Hakoda struggle to start a fire. After about five impatient minutes, Zuko rose and shot a blast into the fire pit, igniting the wood immediately with the intensity of the flames.

"Whoa!" Hakoda gasped, jumping back. "Now, that right there is cheating!" Zuko raised an eyebrow. "But, in light of my own hunger, I will let it slide this once," the big man agreed. "However, tonight I'm teaching you how to start a real fire, got it?"

"Whatever it takes to get this fish in my mouth," Zuko agreed.

But despite all the arguments and frustrations of the day, Zuko had to admit, the fish was good. In fact, Hakoda had been right, in light of the fact that he had caught it, all on his own, it tasted like, quite possibly, one of the best things he had ever eaten. Even if it was an unseasoned, fire cooked fish with no side dishes, it tasted better than anything he remembered being served in the Fire Nation Palace, Ba Sing Se or anywhere else he'd been. Somehow knowing that he had caught, killed, cleaned and cooked it himself, added on to his ravenous appetite and exhaustion, no doubt, brought out a flavor in it he had never tasted before. The only thing he could compare it to was the first cup of tea from the Jasmine Dragon Uncle had actually told him he'd prepared well. That tea had the same quality to it; the taste of hard earned success. It was a delicacy Zuko both craved and cherished.

When everyone had finished eating (and lounging for a while to digest all the fish) Hakoda decided to start a new stage to the hunting trip. "Sparring," he declared. "I think, in light of the blooming warriors we have on this trip, it would be a very important area to cover. The two of you grab your swords and warm up while I put out the fishing lines again. I want to get _something _to bring back to Katara," he added with a wink.

"Is he serious?" Zuko asked, glancing after the Water Tribe man.

"If he's not," Sokka offered, drawing his black sword, "I am."

"What does that mean?" Zuko mocked, reaching for his own, slowly circling Sokka.

Sokka smiled. "I've been waiting to show you how much I've improved for a while now," Sokka admitted. "I'm not the same foolish boy you fought in the South Pole so long ago."

"No," Zuko agreed. "Neither am I."

He felt a smile pull at his own lips as the opposing warrior launched himself at the fire prince.

It was so on.


	19. Chapter 19:Swords and Shampoos

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: omg, trombe actually wrote something  
_

**Trombe: I know. The readers were pestering me about it so...yeah. I've just been busy, is all.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 19: Swords and Shampoos **

* * *

And so the clash of warriors began.

Steel met bitter steel, as the clanging of metal rang with a sweet symphony.

Zuko was on the offensive, pressing the tanned Water Tribe boy back a few steps with every met blow. The Fire Prince prided in his ability to wield the dual dao blades, for the way of the deadly double swords required finesse and unparalleled skill unlike any other. Where one of the weapon went its twin made sure to follow and cover, like a shadow. He was a maelstrom of sharp steel. None should have been able to stand up to the ferocity of his attacks.

But to the chagrin of the firebender warrior, Sokka was holding his own, parrying one strike and dodging the other, using his momentum to spin around Zuko and retaliate with a strike of his own, one Zuko barely avoided by jumping and rolling out of the way.

"I call that one 'dancing with the clouds'," Sokka grinned, an act that irritated the surprised Zuko even more.

A roar echoed through the clearing as Zuko mounted a new, furious attack, twirling around to meet his adversary head on. A steel dance rang throughout the forest, as two swordsmen met each other, blow for blow.Wwhenever one seemed to be the clear victor, the other always seemed to pull through at the very last moment. A step forward was met with a slice back, a slash aimed down confronted two blades forcing their way up.

Once, Zuko found a small opening in Sokka's guard, near the stomach. He did not hesitate.

He spun his left dao sword toward it, as if slicing a falling leaf in two, but it was somehow met by the black blade from Sokka's meteorite sword.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're really taking this seriously," Sokka nervously chortled.

"And if I didn't know any better, I'd say you trained under a master," Zuko stated in a serious tone, pressing his blade against Sokka's and pushing the blue harbed warrior to the side. "And swordsmanship _is_ serious business. I'll show you why!"

And so continued the lively duel between prince and peasant. One wielded two blades that fought as one, the other fought as if his one black sword moved like two.

"Gotcha!" Sokka countered, paring a dao blade and delivering his own blow from the top.

Zuko deftly avoided by stepping a step to the side. "You missed."

While Sokka was still in motion, Zuko turned to give his own attack. "Too slow!" Zuko swung a blow from underneath only to find air as Sokka slid between the prince's legs, tripping one of Zuko's feet in the process.

Normally that would have been the end of the match. But Zuko was far from any average swordsmen. He used his own shifting center of gravity to his advantage, flipping himself over the air and launched a swing aimed at Sokka's head while upside down.

The Southern Water Tribe boy yelled out in surprise as he ducked in time to avoid the unexpected attack.

Zuko's trap was sprung. As he landed he swiftly sweeped Sokka off his feet with the flat blade of his right dao sword, to which his opponent toppled down hard, landing on his bottom. Zuko smiled, the advantage was his. As the prince had been taught, a downed opponent was a defeated opponent. The tip of his left dao sword placed itself mere inches away from Sokka's face.

"I call that one, 'fooling the hog-monkey king'," Zuko mimicked Sokka's previous act of confidence. "Yield," he commanded.

"...uh...I don't think so." Sokka lifted one his eyebrows as tapped his black sword on the inside of Zuko's thighs, the weapon wavering dangerously close to every man's most delicate part.

The battle had drawn to a stalemate.

"All right boys," Hakoda's voice cut through Zuko's focus. "Enough."

Zuko stepped back from the fallen Sokka slightly quicker than needed, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he sucked in air to his lungs. He combined his twin swords and slipped them back into their sheath gracefully. Sokka, on the other hand, slid his back into it's scabbard and tossed it to the side as he collapsed in a panting heap. "Whew! Great workout!"

Hakoda sat beside him, and motioned for Zuko to do the same. The prince crossed his legs as he dropped to the earth, still catching his breath, and placed his blades in front of him respectfully.

"...Kind of getting dangerously serious there aren't you, son?" Hakoda asked.

The Prince's eyes did not waver from the older warrior's gaze. "It was supposed to be a test of swordsmanship, right? Then to hold back whatever I had would have been disgraceful. To me ...and to Sokka."

"Heh," Sokka panted. "I wouldn't have mind a little bit of dishonor... You... you're something else with those swords." The boy was breathing hard through every other word.

"Well since you put it that way..." Hakoda nodded slowly, a grin apparent on his face. "Zuko," he continued, "tell me, what is Sokka's greatest strength?"

The prince hesitated. The only people he had ever rated were his enemies, and he had never really had a friend to judge before, so he wasn't quite sure how to answer without offending anyone. "I..."

"Go on then," Sokka prompted, crossing his arms behind his head. "Tell us how great I am."

Zuko felt a smile pull at the sides of his mouth. "Fine," he agreed. "Sokka doesn't fight like anyone I've ever met before."

"I knew it," Sokka raised his hands up, as if waving to admiring fans.

"He's a moron." Zuko put it plain and simple.

"Hey!"

"He is completely unpredictable," The Fire Prince went on as if Sokka's protest went unheard. "No style, no form, no substance, no nothing. To put it shortly it's like a spearman trying to fight like a swordsman, or an earthbender trying to bend like an airbender. Its unnatural."

"Hey," Sokka cut in. "He said 'strength', Zuko."

"But..." Zuko paused, taking a slight breath in. "Your unpredictability is what makes you a dangerous opponent. I could never tell what you were going to do next; you actually had me watching my step. You have no method, yet you fight as if you can see my weakness. You're wild and willful. Fighting someone of your calibur... let's just say fighting you was almost like playing Paisho, a big mind game." Zuko's answer caused Sokka to grin stupidly. "Almost." The former Prince of Fire emphasized. "I mean, who the hell aims for a guy's privates anyway? I swear, you're crazy."

"Heheh," Sokka shrugged. "Yeah... Sorry about that."

"Sokka," Hakoda refocused the conversation when Zuko finished, "what do you think Zuko's greatest strength is?"

Sokka rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "The way he calculates everything so naturally." Zuko raised an eyebrow. "He fights with both swords like they were one, and he's quick with them. He uses one to block even while he's attacking with the other, like a back up plan, just in case, making it doubly hard to find an opening. He even compensates for his blind spot really well like that." Hakoda glanced at Zuko, who felt his teeth gnash together. "Even knowing it was there, he never showed me any openings, and made it hard to hit. He predicted any attacks he couldn't see so perfectly that it's no wonder I didn't know he had poor vision despite all our years of fighting until back at the Boiling Rock."

"The two of you are both great swordsmen," Hakoda acknowledged, "but you both learned extremely differently. Sokka learned by traveling around the world, picking up something everywhere he went. His style is shifting, complex, and unrefined. But he uses his own ingenuity and incorporates something new and different each time he touches a blade. He fights to survive."

"Zuko, I can tell, was trained in the militant arts." The prince nodded. "But you also have traveled, and have become a great fighter in more than just theory and practice. You understand the need to attack and cut first, and your style has been drilled to perfection. You leave no openings, and you have a response for any move a fighter throws at you. That, combined with the experienced ability to read and predict your opponent's attacks, makes you a a challenging adversary. You're fighting style is to press the attack."

Zuko nodded his understanding, and Hakoda continued. "Now, Sokka, tell me Zuko's biggest weakness."

Zuko tried to keep all emotion off his face as he turned to face the watertribe boy expectantly. Sokka nodded. "Sometimes, when I'm fighting Zuko, he repeats himself."

"What?" Zuko demanded.

"Not like... all the time," Sokka defended his statement, "but I've been fighting you for a long time, so I've learned to see it. You have... favorite moves, or regular responses to an attack, so that once I learn them, I can predict what you're going to do." Zuko raised an eyebrow. "For instance," Sokka elaborated, "you always lead with your right. Whether that's because it's your strong hand, or because your left is your weak eye, I don't know, but you do. Your left is still a good attack, but it's either a follow through or a feint, so I don't worry about it as much. It usually works well with your right hand, but the right is definitely the lead."

"That is an excellent observation, Sokka," Hakoda admitted, impressed.

"Actually, I had some help with it," the boy confessed. "Aang told us once that airbending is a thinking martial art that involves staying a half step ahead of your opponent. He said he could always tell by Zuko's face and stance where he was going to attack next, and that's how he always managed to stay one step ahead. Usually."

Hakoda stood and nodded. "Well, it was right on the money, Sokka." His head turned to Zuko. "Stand up," he told the prince. "You were trained to learn steps, and memorize patterns. This kind of muscle memory can be extremely helpful in battle, giving you a fast reaction time, and a confidence that is essential to victory. But Sokka is right too. If you come to depend too much on this, an experienced fighter will take advantage of you by learning your moves and predicting them."

"Like Azula," Zuko realized as he stood.

"Right," Hakoda agreed. Then he held out his hand to Sokka, and waved his fingers for the black sword. Sokka quickly extracted it from it's scabbard and offered the hilt to his father. "Try to attack me." He dropped into a fighting stance, the meteorite blade held defensively in front of him with both hands.

"I..." Zuko was hesitating again, not quite sure of his position with the water tribe father.

"Well, come on, boy," Hakoda waved his blade. "I haven't got all day."

Zuko nodded, and drew his dao blades again, separating them, and letting one come familiarly to each hand. Raising them before him, he decided on a double attack. Stepping into a spin like motion, he brought one sword raining down from the top right, his body force behind it, and the other rising up from the bottom left, knowing that one would have to connect, because Hakoda couldn't block both with his single blade. He would either duck, dodge, or retreat, and Zuko was ready.

But as his weight carried him towards the veteran fighter, Zuko felt his right blade clang off the tip of the black sword. Hakoda made no move to retreat. In that half second, Zuko knew he had the man, as his left blade came up towards the warrior. It was too easy.

But shock quickly filled him as the sound of metal on metal rang out through the clearing, sending a throbbing up to the shoulder of his left arm as Hakoda blocked his left swing with the base of his son's blade. Somehow, he had moved quick enough to catch both attacks with the same sword, without retreating at all.

Finally taking a step, Hakoda lunged calmly forward, into Zuko's arm reach, while the prince was still stumbling forwards, carried by the moment of his charge. In that one simple move, the black blade came up right beneath Zuko's chin, the cool metal pressing on his neck. Hakoda had stopped him almost effortlessly.

The man smiled, not even breathing hard, and removed the blade from it's threatening position. Zuko stepped back, relieved, and Hakoda returned the blade to Sokka. "You lead with your right," Hakoda repeated his son. "Therefore, if I know this, I can make use of the scant difference in time before the second blade hits. This is your attack pattern. If I can find it, then I win.

"You need to learn how to adapt with each fight, change to match a fighter, and change just because you can. Don't be so predictable. Confidence makes us strong; overconfidence makes us obvious. Then, even a less skilled fighter, like Sokka, can beat you," he concluded. "Now, what is Sokka's weakness?" he asked, letting his question linger.

Zuko bowed to Hakoda before sitting back down. He had had plenty of time to think of this. "His stance," Zuko stated.

"My stance?" Sokka echoed, curious.

"Right. In firebending, and earthbending I believe, our strength comes from our stance."

Hakoda nodded. "That is common in most fighting styles."

"Sokka can attack at almost any point, which makes it hard to fight him. One time he hit me when he was backwards in midair," Zuko recalled. "That's surprising, to be sure, but not having a strong stance can make you weak. It means your attacks don't have strength, so even if they hit they don't always land or do damage, and it leaves you open. If your root can be broken, you will fall. This is fundamental."

"And that," Hakoda agreed, "is precisely right as well. Zuko's fighting is based off fundamentals. Sokka's completely lacks any kind of base. Certainly, my boy, you're a good fighter, but you rely on your instincts and chance too much. You create your own luck, but you take a lot of risks to do so. A good point Zuko made was your attacks. You fight defensively, which is only natural, considering, I'm sure, how many people have attacked you. But if you don't fight with purpose, then no blow is worth striking. A sword is a weapon for killing; to treat it as anything else is to demean it. When you attack, you have to remember that."

"It's like with the moose-lion," Zuko pointed out. "You can swing sticks at it from the tree all you want, but you won't kill it that way. You have to stand and face it. Which you can do," he added, seeing Sokka's face fall as the boy remembered running away from the raging beast the day before. "You stood again my ship on the day we came to your village," Zuko reminded him. "You stood against an entire fleet of firebenders. That's so brave, it's crazy."

The boy glanced at his father, who held up two fingers, close together, as if measuring something tiny. "Just a little crazy," his dad whispered. "In a good way."

"Actually," Sokka considered, "Aang had a similar lesson from Toph, now that we're on the subject of moose-lions. He had to stand and face one, in order to get the mindset of an earthbender."

"Did he?" Zuko asked.

"Yeah. But not until the third try," Sokka griped. "In the meantime, I was stuck in a hole, getting practically trampled by it every time he chickened out. Which is why I HATE saber-toothed moose-lions!" the boy concluded angrily.

"Nice story," Zuko deadpanned as Sokka crossed his arms huffily.

"Stand up," Hakoda directed his son, reaching a hand towards Zuko. The prince quickly handed him the dao blades, and he spun them in his hands once to get a feel for them. "I'm going to attack you, Sokka. Fight back."

Sokka gulped, nodded, and gripped his blade with determination. Hakoda's foot slid forward on the ground, and then he launched at his son, swinging both blades. Sokka sidestepped to his left, spinning around the twin blades. As he came around, still spinning on his left foot, he brought his own blade up towards Hakoda's open side with a shout.

But Hakoda seemed to have known it was coming, because he twisted his left blade in a manner that said he hadn't committed fully to his original attack, and caught Sokka's two handed assault with his own, casually redirecting it to his left. Which pulled Sokka further back to his right, as he was still finishing his own left hand turn. His body was now completely off balance, and a backhanded sweep of Hakoda's right knocked his foot out from under him with the dull backside of the dao blade. Sokka landed in a heap on the ground, with Hakoda's borrowed blade pointed right at him. When his father withdrew the swords, Sokka blinked and rubbed his behind, having been beaten as effortlessly as Zuko had.

"You weren't committed to that attack at all," Hakoda chastised as he returned the prince's blades. "You only had one foot on the ground, and barely that. It makes your attack weak, and easy to deflect. If you had planted that second foot, your attack would have been strong, and controlled. Do you understand?"

Sokka nodded.

"You both are exceptional fighters," he told the boys, "but you each have something the other one needs. Zuko, Sokka is adaptive and original. You should learn from him how to fight unpredictably, and be ready for anything. Sokka, Zuko is strong and sure, and you should learn from his intelligent use of fundamentals how to put meaning behind your attacks. Both of your styles could be tempered extremely by the other."

"Hey," Zuko realized. "My uncle told me something like that once, about firebending. He said the people of the water tribe had a deep sense of community and love, and were capable of adapting to many things. Then he taught me a firebending move that he created, based on principles he'd learned from studying waterbenders."

"Sounds kind of hooky," Sokka mocked. "Is it like your dancing dragons one?"

"That move saved my life," Zuko replied, testily. "My father wasn't expecting anything like it. It... breaks away from tradition, I guess you could say. Anyway, the point is, he said you have to take knowledge from all parts of the world, because if you take it from just one place, it becomes ridged and stale. However, if we combine aspects of all four styles into one, we can grow stronger. Just like Aang."

"Your Uncle sounds like a very wise man," Hakoda acknowledged.

"Yeah," Zuko agreed. "He is. I just wish... I had known it sooner."

"Well," Hakoda surmised, "it is never too late to put into practice what he taught you. From now on, I want the two of you to spar every morning. A fighter who could make use of Sokka's creativity and adaptability as well as Zuko's fundamentals and determination would truly become a force to be reckoned with. You both have that potential. If you work together, despite your differences, you could be very strong."

The two boys nodded, eying each other, gold glinting hard against the deep blue gaze. Zuko felt himself getting excited, and he realized where Katara had gotten her motivational way with words. But then, perhaps luckily, as he was back on the subject of the girl he was trying to forget, the warrior interrupted his train of thought.

"Now then," Hakoda asked. "What's for dinner, boys?"

Zuko could hear Sokka's matching groan.

* * *

The catching of the meal was a grueling process, but with both boys working together along with the previous day's worth of hunting knowledge (more then they previously had), it wasn't long until they caught an adequate sized mole-rabbit.

It took some debating as to who would kill and skin the cute small animal, and after awhile both reluctantly agreed that the creature deserved a more humane end then to die by their clumsy and inexperienced hands. And so they gave the animal to Hakoda, who grudgingly took the task at hand while giving the two a stern lecture on what it actually meant to do whatever one needed to do to survive.

Still, they had caught something, and the Southern Water Tribe Chieftain was proud.

And for once he felt they deserved a nice relaxing evening.

The three enjoyed their meal under the blanket of the heavens, the stars and moon glinted proudly, growing fuller each night.

"So... Zuko... where did you learn to fight like that?" Sokka asked.

"...I was taught by some of the martial masters. You know... perks of being a Prince." Zuko smirked as he took a small bite out of his warm meal. "You?"

"...Oh. Well, nothing like that. Just like what my dad said, it's something I picked up here and there. You know... cause I'm so naturally gifted," Sokka confidently smiled.

"Right." Zuko sarcastically replied.

"Well I did train a bit under Master Piandao," Sokka remembered fondly.

"No way." Zuko stared in disbelief at his warrior counterpart. "THE swordmaster, Piandao?"

"So you've heard of him?" Sokka's eyes glinted.

"The swordmaster Piandao is a legend among my people, Sokka. Everyone who ever wielded a sword wanted to be like him. They say he took down a hundred men at one time in his youth!"

"...You're kidding right?" Sokka remembered the older swordsman, how graceful and fast his blade moved. If what Zuko told was true then the swordmaster had been taking it easy on him.

Hakoda enjoyed watching the two converse. Their small talk reminded him of himself and his old friend Bato when they were both younger.

"Man... this is great," Sokka smiled as his father joined them. "Great food caught by our own hands, all this open space for us, and the stars... man the stars!" He exclaimed with enthusiasm on the last part. "I wish Suki was here. She would have enjoyed this."

"...And how are you and... Suki doing, my boy?" Hakoda smiled in a mischievous way as he noticed his son's cheeks turning red for a moment. It was no secret to a father if his son liked a girl. Not that Sokka could have hid it from anyone... "You know I like the girl, so you better tell me you're doing well by her."

"Uh... doing great, Dad. Just... just fine..." Sokka waved it off in a nervous manner. "Should we really talk about this?" Sokka whispered to his father.

"And why not? There's no one here but us men. What else are we to talk about other then women and fighting?" Hakoda shrugged, causing his son to stare at him in disbelief.

"I'm just pulling your leg, son. You're mother gave me that very same look when I told her that was all we talked about too." The Water Tribe Chieftain laughed fondly at the memory. "Ah, Sokka, you look like her still sometimes..."

"I miss her too," Sokka told his father.

"So, ah... What about you, Zuko?" Hakoda dodged the subject of his late wife. "Do you have a... certain girl you have an eye for?"

"Uh..." But before he could answer Sokka spoke for him.

"He totally has," the boy grinned. "This one girl named Mai. You might have seen her; she was the one who saved our butts back in the Boiling... oh..." Sokka stopped himself, realizing the fate of the dark haired girl. He looked at Zuko, who seemed to be not paying attention as he played with his food. "...Look man I'm sorry I-"

"No... no it's... it's okay. I mean... What else could I have done? I'd probably ended up being captured again in that stupid place." Silence fell between the camp as the minutes passed by, only the crackling sound of the wood burning against the fire remained. Just then Zuko angrily stabbed his food, losing his composure for a brief second. "Still... I should have done something. I know I could have."

Zuko found Hakoda's hand resting on his shoulder. "I know how you feel. Really. I know. I'm sorry for the sacrifice you have made, and know that I am grateful for that. I promise you, we will save her when the time comes."

The prince could only look at the man solemnly. "Hopefully that time comes sooner then later."

And once more the three ran out of things to talk about, and a comfortable silence fell, leaving only the lingering thought of the previous conversation in it's wake until sleep set in.

* * *

"Ugh!" Katara groaned. "What is taking them so long?"

"That's like... the fourth time you've asked us that in the last five minutes," Suki muttered.

"We have, like, two meals worth of food left," she fretted to Haru and Suki. "Ah! I just _knew_ they were going to do this! Men..."

"Come on, Katara," Haru suggested. "Let's talk about something else."

"Or better yet," Toph called, joining the three "let's go have a bath, you, me and Suki."

"Since when do you like baths?" Katara asked the blind girl suspiciously.

"What are you talking about?" the girl remarked, spitting over the edge of the air temple. "I love baths. But more importantly, so do you. Here, look," she added, pulling a bottle out of her sleeve and waving tauntingly. "I have shampoo!"

"Aang put you up to this, didn't he?" Katara realized.

"Who cares," Toph barked. "Twinkle-toes isn't the issue right now. You are. Chill, Sugar-Queen. If we run out of food, we can always eat the boys when they come back." Suki smothered a laugh. "Now, come on. I can't swim, so you'd better come with me."

"I'll come," the Kyoshi warrior agreed.

Katara sighed. "Haru, watch the camp?"

"Have fun!" he agreed as the girls left.

As reluctant as she had been to join them in the bath, when she actually got in the water, she was glad she had. Somehow, it was hard to stay mad in warm water. Toph splashed around like a giant, stomping through the shallows, and Suki helped Katara wash her back. "I miss my warriors," the girl confided. "We all used to bathe together like this. Course," she added to the earthbender, "we could all swim."

"I'm sure it's over-rated," Toph shrugged her off. Katara laughed. "See?" Toph pointed out. "You're all ready feeling better. Twinkle-toes was right!"

"Ha!" Katara declared, sitting up. "So he did send you."

"Yup," she allowed, handing over the shampoo and laying back in the shallow warm water. "That boy sees right through you."

"Sometimes he's... intuitive," Katara agreed.

"Yeah," Suki chuckled, "and crazy about you."

"Whatever," Katara smirked, trying to hide her blush. No one but the two of them knew exactly how close she and Aang had become recently, and she wasn't even sure they knew themselves. "You should be one to talk," she turned the conversation to Suki instead. "You're not even concerned that Sokka's just run out on you like that. And after you two were all over each other..."

"Ha." She rolled her eyes. "Actually, I'm not really used to having... so much Sokka time. Not that I don't like having him around!" she insisted. "It's just taking a lot outta me, you know?"

"Eh, he'll cool down," Toph waved negligently. "He's just got the same worries as you. Finally with his girlfriend, and the fool doesn't know how to react. I'm sure he'll come around with time."

"He's probably also trying to make the best out of every second you have together," Katara figured, washing out her hair. "He's nervous about loosing people he cares about before he has a chance to be with them. We lost Mom that way, and... another friend from the northern water tribe," she finished, not sure if Sokka had mentioned Yue to Suki yet. _I need to remember to remind Sokka to tell her before she finds out... some other way..._

"Yeah," Toph remembered. "He was pretty shook up when Azula told us she'd captured you too."

"I can kind of see that in him," Suki recognized.

"Eh, give him time," Toph insisted again as she reached for the soap. "He'll cool off, and then when he's not around, you'll actually miss him."

"Oh, don't worry," Suki smiled. "I know how that feels."

"Forget him," Katara sighed, tossing Suki the shampoo. "I just want the food he's got."

The other two girls laughed.

"Spirits," Suki groaned. "I love shampoo."

"See, Toph," Katara grinned. "Bath's aren't so bad. Shampoo and pleasant conversation never killed anyone."

"No," she admitted, "but it did get you peeped at by Zuko."

Suki snorted a laugh as Katara flushed, remembering the shocked look on Zuko's face when he had realized it was her. Somehow, now that she didn't hate his guts, imagining those intense eyes seeing her made her flush very hard. Before she had just been angry and insulted. Now, suddenly, she worried about it. It was strange. _It was the same gaze then that he still gives me sometimes. The one that scares me... _She shook herself back to the present.

"Yeah," Toph was staying, "and she stuck him to the roof!" Suki started laughing.

"Ah," the warrior sighed. "Where would any of those boys be without us?"

The three looked at each other, and started laughing again. The giggles spread like wildfire, and soon Katara's frustration was gone like the streaming water. "Thanks, Toph," she smiled, when she finally stopped chuckling. "This really was exactly what I needed."

"Me too," Suki breathed.

"Good," the blind girl grinned. "'Cause I hate baths."

Katara found herself laughing again as the last rays of the sun set in the horizon, letting night drop over the temple.

"So," Suki asked. "What do you think the boys are saying?"


	20. Chapter 20:Who You Love

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: heya fans, sorry it took so long! but, i've got the next few chapters written and ready for trombe to read and prep, and we've finally got the last chapter of hakoda's survival hunt for your reading pleasure! please enjoy! and keep encouraging us to write (it's the only thing that makes trombe respond any more!)_

**Trombe: Hey, for your information I'm taking this through all the way. We're actually planning on writing this till the post war avatar world. So We've still got chapters and chapters to write. In fact I've actually written some of them already in advance. We just can't post then cause you know...we're not there yet.**

_artsyelric: speaking of all ready written chapters, for those of you screaming for more zutara-y action, i'm way ahead of you XDD_

_ps: stop posting without me trombe XPP we have typos! (mostly mine, but hey, i didn't even get a re-read on this...) please note: the moon is only near full, not full yet.  
_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 20: Who You Love**

* * *

The morning came without notice as the darkness of night slowly made way for the twilight of the dawn. Naturally Zuko was already awake, diligently packing away his things in discretion.

The same couldn't be said of a certain snoozing young warrior. The Southern Water Tribe boy was still in the sweet embrace of sleep and dream, his mouth wide open and wet from a constant drooling that Zuko hoped he never had to see again.

The Fire Prince finished his work quickly. It was time to go back home.

"Hey. Wake up." Zuko gave a strong and firm slap on Sokka's sleeping form, who violently convulsed from the sudden sensation.

"WHODA…WHADA…WHA?" The sleepy boy's eyes, still crusted from sleep, frantically tried to locate the source of his disturbance.

"It's dawn. We need to get moving if we're going to meet Katara's deadline." His reminder seemed to be lost upon the still half conscious Sokka whose head constantly weaved up and down.

"Just... Just five more minutes." Sokka tried his best to stiffle a yawn but to no avail, his head slowing drifting back into the comforts of his sleeping bag.

Zuko did not have the time nor the patience for his antics. The Fire Prince made his way close to Sokka's sleeping form, and pulled the sleeping bag right out from underneath the poor boy.

"Ah! Cold! Cold!" The quiet dawn made Sokka's cries seem louder then usual as he eventually managed to stir himself awake.

"And you call yourself a man of the Water Tribes," Zuko scoffed.

"Hey just because I lived my whole life surrounded by blocks of ice does not mean I love to freeze my butt off!" he rebuttled adamantly, slapping his face lightly and rubbing out the morning crust from his eyes.

"Whatever. At least you're awake. It's time we leave this place."

"Why are you so grumpy this early in the morning?"

"Maybe its because we spent all this time going out on this... survival hunt of yours and we're coming back with nothing to show for?" Zuko gave Sokka an incredulous look.

"Hey we did not come out with nothing-"

"Self-discovery and mental maturity does not count," the Fire prince interrupted with gusto.

"Hey, those are important things too!"

"Fine," Zuko pointed out. "Then you can be the one to try and convince Katara they're edible."

To which the blue eyed Water Tribe warrior responded with a pause and then, "Oh you're good." Rubbing his neck sheepishly Sokka opened one of the water skins they had replenished the night before and began to splash some cold water on his face.

"So? What's the plan?" Zuko sat on a tree stump right across from him.

"You let me worry about Katara. I'll think of something," Sokka answered nonchalantly as he pulled his long dark hair back into the wolftail knot he usually wore.

"Right," Zuko muttered as his stomach rumbled. "Sure."

"Up and at 'em boys!" Hakoda called, striding back into camp with a full pack over his shoulder. "We want an early move on today - oh, Sokka! You're already up. How unusual for you."

"Yeah, blame the grumpy, earlier riser over there," Sokka grumbled, sparing Zuko a glance.

The Prince just shrugged and started to ask what was in Hakoda's bag, but he was cut off before he got the chance. "Well, since you're up, sparring practice, then pack up your stuff so we can get going. We should get everything we could out of the day light."

Zuko sighed heavily, looking forward to another full day of meaningless labor, but Sokka had already given a whoop and ran for his sword - sparring being his new favorite part of the trip, and soon the firebender was forced to defend himself against the maniac peasant again.

They waisted no time clearing up and began hiking, breaking only for a short lunch when they reached the area where the river and the canyon connected. After the boys had snagged a few fish, they quickly cooked them and wolfed them down, a few extras disappearing into Hakoda's pack in exchange for the emergence of more seal jerky, which Sokka chewed at as they set a new course. They turned north and followed the deep crevasse up to the air temple for a few hours, but as the afternoon wore on, Zuko began to realize he still didn't recognize any of the surrounding area. "Are we going the right way?" he asked Hakoda. "It seems like we should be near the temple by now, since we only walked for a day when we left."

Hakoda sealed his lips, eying Zuko suspiciously. "You know I can't tell you where we are."

"Oh, come on." Zuko was quickly growing tired of all the 'rules' on this trip. "We figured out how to get home, already! And we're dealing with hungry people who need us back home - you could at least tell us how close we are."

Hakoda rubbed his chin. "All right, fine," he agreed sourly, reminding Zuko vividly of his overly dramatic son. "Actually, we're still a little ways away, but it's almost a full moon, and the night is bright here without trees to block it. If we walk for a few extra miles, we can be there an hour or so after sunset, I would estimate."

"So," Sokka asked, his voice oddly tight, "we'll get home after the moon rises?"

"Afraid of the dark now, are we son?" Hakoda teased.

Sokka flushed. "No," he objected. "Just of walking. Why don't we take our time and try and catch some more food; we can be home in the morning."

"You see much game out here?" Hakoda eyed the plains like area around the top of the divide. "Maybe a few mole-rabbits, but those just barely feed us, with your appetite and all."

"Hey, I'm still growing," Sokka insisted. "I'll be taller than you soon."

Hakoda laughed. "I wouldn't be surprised." He tossed Sokka a canteen. "Here, drink. Maybe if we're fast we can make it before dinner."

But increasing their pace did little but coat Zuko in a sweat. As the sun sunk ever closer to the end of the sky, the Prince could tell they were still an hour or two's hike away from the temple, though the terrain was beginning to look familiar. Ahead of him, Hakoda stopped, burring the tip of his walking staff in the rocky dirt as he eyed the area around him.

"It's sunset," he said, "but I think the air temple is hidden just around that bend."

"That's about three more miles." Zuko breathed heavily, untying the strip of cloth from around his forehead and soaking some water into his sweaty bangs.

"Think we should go for it?" Hakoda asked, his tone saying he was up for it if they were.

"I-"

But before Zuko could express an opinion, Sokka gave a shout as he tipped over the edge of the crevasse, having stepped on some loose stones by the edge. He slid a few feet, and then dropped to a stop on a rock ledge a few feet beneath the top. "Sokka!" Hakoda shouted, rushing to the edge to peer over after his son. "You moron, are you all right?"

"I think I hurt my ankle," Sokka called back.

"At least the fall was short," Zuko pointed out, his face appearing beside Hakoda's, peering over the ledge at their fallen companion.

Sokka pushed himself carefully to his feet and winced as he tried to take a step. "Oh yeah," he muttered, "definitely sprained something."

"Should I go ahead to camp and get Katara?" Zuko offered, thinking of her healing.

"Don't bother," Hakoda waved him off. "Can you walk?"

"Not far." Sokka managed to find his feet, but he didn't look to steady. "Pull me out?"

He stretched up his arms, and Zuko and his father both caught one, heaving their friend up over the edge while Sokka's feet scrambled against the cliff face until he reached the top. As the three men caught their breaths in the glowing, golden light of the setting sun, the heat of the day slowly began to fade. Hakoda was the first to recover from lifting Sokka and his heavy pack, and quickly moved over to check his son's ankle. "It doesn't look that bad," he remarked.

"Ow ow ow, Dad!" Sokka grumbled. "Stop pulling on it!"

"Tch," Hakoda mocked. "Baby."

"Why don't we just stop here one more night?" Sokka suggested again. "Get a good rest, and start out again in the morning. We're not far, right? We can be there just after dawn."

"What about Katara's deadline?" Zuko asked, fearful of getting on the girl's bad side again.

"We're already overdue," Sokka determined. "What does a few more hours difference make? You'll still have plenty of time to firebend with Aang tomorrow whether we get there tonight, or tomorrow morning."

Hakoda eyed his son suspiciously, but the he finally nodded. "All right," he agreed. "We'll camp here tonight, and head home at dawn."

"But-" Zuko started.

"I'll handle my daughter," Hakoda interrupted. "She'll have to see that an _injury _like Sokka's comes first over a deadline, right son?" Sokka swallowed hard, but nodded. "Zuko, start a fire, and set up away from the cliff edge this time. I'm going to get something for dinner."

As the older man set out into the enclosing darkness, Zuko glanced at the hobbled Sokka. "Is he upset?" the Prince asked carefully, not used to that tone from Hakoda, but unsure how to judge the other boy's father.

"Naw," Sokka dismissed. "Just ticked a little. He'll be fine." The boy glanced up at the sky where the moon was coming out, and his expression changed.

The moon was nearly full.

* * *

When Sokka laid back Zuko realized he wasn't planning to help with the camp, and so he slipped off his pack and started gathering firewood himself. By the time Hakoda came back from his hunting on the plains, Zuko had everyone's bags unrolled, and the wood in the fire pit he'd made all set up to catch quickly. The Prince knelt beside it, muttering angrily to himself as he tried to make flame from a set of Sokka's spark rocks. "If earth was made to start fires, they wouldn't be separate elements," he told Hakoda.

The man's spirits seemed back up, because he chortled as he set down a stick with three mole-rabbits hanging from it. "The trips pretty much over," he admitted. "And I guess that's not really a skill you need."

"Thank you!" Zuko groaned, flicking his wrist and sending a roaring flame into the pit. The wood crackled and caught immediately. "Pass over a mole-rabbit; I'm starving."

As Zuko and Hakoda began skinning the catch and using the stick Hakoda had returned with to fry them, Sokka was peeling fruit and stabbing it on a cooking stick of his own. Eventually, his father turned to him. "What are you doing?"

"Making desert," Sokka declared, sticking his own spit over the flames to roast.

"Are those ash bananas?" Zuko asked.

"Yup," Sokka agreed.

"What's a banana?" Hakoda inquired.

"A fruit," Zuko said quickly. "It's very common in the Fire Nation."

"Which," Sokka added, "we're still in."

"I didn't see any ash banana trees," Zuko tried to remember. "Don't they normally grown on the more tropical islands?"

"There was one up by that lake," Sokka revealed. "All the ash bananas were small and green, but that was almost two days ago now that I picked them. They're ready to eat now! And I've still got more in my bag."

"Katara will be so pleased," Zuko muttered.

But Hakoda was prodding the ash bananas with interest. "Why are you cooking them?"

Sokka grinned. "I tried roasted ash bananas at a festival we attending in one of the Fire Nation towns. It's really good. Roasting it brings out all the sweet juices. They also had like... dipping sauces and stuff, but the banana is still good by itself," he concluded, reaching for one of the finished mole-rabbits on a spit and chewing on it hungrily.

"Back in the palace," Zuko reminisced, "they have the sweetest fruit plates. Mai used to love them. But the roasted ash bananas in honey were always my favorite."

"Honey?" Sokka asked.

"Yup," Zuko agreed. "You harvest it from the vulture-bee hives."

"Eww, I ate some of that when we were in a hive," the boy revealed. "It tasted horrible! How can you eat it?"

"You ate it straight from the hive?" Zuko demanded. "You're supposed to let it mature! The honey will separate from the meaty substance that the vulture bees live on, and eventually, all the honey will sink to the bottom, and meaty part of the vulture bees' diet will drift to the top. You skim it off, and collect the honey from the bottom."

"Sounds time consuming," Sokka stated.

"I guess," Zuko agreed. "I never really thought about it before. But I guess a lot of things in the palace would be hard to make on your own, like goat-cow buttermilk."

Sokka's mouth watered. "You gotta let me try that some day," the boy begged.

Zuko chuckled. "Well, if we all come out of this alive, I'm sure you'll get the chance. If they let me back in the palace, that is..."

Hakoda handed Zuko a flaming mole-rabbit. "Don't worry," he assured the boy. "The world has a way of righting itself. When this is all done, I'm sure you will be able to go home."

"Assuming I still want to," Zuko sighed, biting into the fleshy meat.

"I know the feeling." Hakoda eyes grew slightly distant. "Once you leave home, it becomes harder and harder to go back to it. Your perspective of the world changes, home seems smaller, and it changes too. But if you get afraid to go home, you'll wind up like me, missing everything." He glanced over at Sokka sadly.

"Don't worry, Dad," Sokka grinned. "I'm sure Katara will forgive you eventually. After all, if she could forgive Zuko here, I'm sure she'll come back around to you."

"Thanks." Zuko chucked a rabbit-mole leg bone at Sokka.

"So," Hakoda started, still watching his son, "does that mean you're going to tell me why you really don't want to go back to camp tonight?"

"What?" Sokka asked, stopping glaring at Zuko.

"Why you don't want to go back to camp," Hakoda repeated, glancing over the mole-rabbit he was gnawing on to gauge his son's reaction. "You're ankle's not hurt that bad. So why don't you want to go back?"

"What makes you think I don't?" Sokka demanded.

"Every time we talked about making it back tonight, you seemed against it, so I'm just assuming that's why you pretended to be hurt."

Sokka's eyes narrowed, but his Dad watched him relentlessly. The boy tossed aside his mole-rabbit and stood up, proving that his father had been right - his ankle supported him perfectly. "Sokka!" Hakoda demanded. "Where are you going?"

"I don't have to take this," he said suddenly, and Zuko was surprised. Hakoda had hardly been harsh at all. "I don't want to talk about it, okay?" he shouted, before running out into the darkness.

Hakoda blinked after him before turning back to Zuko. "What was that about?" he asked, and the Prince shrugged. "Was I too hard on him or something?"

"Don't ask _me _that." Zuko cleaned off his own mole-rabbit. "The ash bananas are done." Hakoda sighed and stood up, obviously preparing to leave too. Zuko glanced up at him. "Don't you want one?"

"Shouldn't we go after Sokka?" Hakoda asked.

"Why?"

"Because he seemed upset about something - that's very unlike him to act that way. He didn't even take a banana."

Zuko shrugged. "He'll come back when he's ready."

Hakoda continued to watch the Prince, and suddenly Zuko felt like _he _was the one who just didn't get it. What it was he was supposed to get, he didn't know, but Hakoda watched him with sad eyes before turning out to walk into the night. "Some trusted," he muttered disappointingly as he went, leaving Zuko alone in the camp.

"What?" Zuko called after him. "What?" But the older man was gone.

Grumbling to himself, Zuko stuck one of the warm ash bananas into his mouth and sucked on it for a time, chewing the sweat fruit in solitude. Finally the curiosity got to him. He was sure Sokka could take care of himself, but Hakoda had been watching Zuko like he'd done something wrong by leaving the boy alone. Whatever he was supposed to do as a friend, the father obviously thought he was failing at, and there was clearly something bothering Sokka. Blowing a thin stream of steam from his mouth, he sprang to his feet and set off in the direction he'd saw Hakoda go.

As his eyes readjusted to the darkness now that he was away from the fire, he could make out the land around him, and see the flames easily in the dark behind him. Glancing around, he heard his friends' voice before he saw them.

"What's this about?" Hakoda was asking, as he lay a hand on Sokka's back.

"It's nothing, okay?" Sokka insisted, turning away.

Hakoda sighed, and sat down next to him, not saying anything, and the two were quiet for a time. Then Sokka finally muttered, "it's Suki, okay? I didn't want to see her tonight."

"Why?" Hakoda asked, surprised. "Normally, you can't seem to get enough of her. Did you fight?"

Sokka shook his head.

"Then, what's wrong?"

The boy's body moved as he breathed heavily, and his face turned. He was looking back up at the moon again, and suddenly Zuko thought he knew what this was about. "Dad, um... How did you deal with it when Mom died?"

"I... I don't understand. Is that what this is about?"

Sokka squared his shoulders, as if preparing to face something very big. "Dad, Suki wasn't... she wasn't the first girl I liked. I mean, I met her first, but... there was someone else." His father made an encouraging motion to show that he wasn't going to judge, and Sokka eventually continued. "It was when I was at the North Pole. There was this girl there, a princess, and she was... amazing. Her name was Yue. I was completely mad for her, and... she liked me too. But she was supposed to marry someone else."

"Ah," Hakoda agreed. "That's hard."

"That's not it." Hakoda fell quiet. "Her father asked me to protect her when the Fire Nation came to attack us, and I tried. I really tried. But Zuko kidnapped Aang, and Zhao came and caught the fish, and Aang was being possessed by a spirit, and it was all just insane. The... the moon spirit was killed."

"The moon spirit?" Hakoda repeated, his tone confused.

Sokka nodded. "The entire sky was red, like blood, and Aang went on a rampage. I still don't think he knows everything he did back then, all the Fire Nation troops he wiped out..."

"I remember that night," Hakoda recalled. "The entire sky was red, and my men were panicking. I didn't know what to do, what it was, and then suddenly, it returned to normal."

"Yeah... Yue gave her life to bring the moon spirit back to life."

"What?" Hakoda tone was confused and amazed, the same mixture of feelings Zuko felt, even though he had been there at the Northern Water Tribe, without understanding everything occurring around him.

"She, Yue, said she had been blessed by the moon as a child - that it had saved her, and given her life. She wanted to give it back. So she touched the fish, and then she disappeared. She turned into a spirit, and she left this world."

"So she died?" Hakoda asked, his voice sad. "I'm sorry."

But Sokka was shaking his head. "I don't think she died. I think she's still up there, in the moon, watching over us."

"How do you know that?"

"Before she left, disappeared, she came to me as a spirit." The boy's tone broke and his voice quavered. "She told me she'd always love me, and Aang even said he's seen her since. At night, one time, when he flew off your ship, she appeared to him and saved him from the ocean. And sometimes, I think I can see her too. I see her... so many nights..."

Hakoda reached out and wrapped an arm around his son, holding him awkwardly, sideways. "I'm so sorry, son. It's not easy, losing someone you love."

"It was my fault!" Sokka shouted. "I should have done something. I should have saved her... somehow. I should have told her everything I wanted to, before... before it was too late! But I didn't! I didn't... I didn't help her at all..."

Hakoda tightened his grip on the boy as Sokka's body shook, and Zuko was amazed. _Has he ever talked about this? He mentioned it once, on the balloon, but otherwise I've never heard him talk about it even once. It must have been eating at him for a long time...  
_

Silently a few tears streamed down from the young warrior's face. His ice blue eyes fixed in a gaze that didn't really have a direction, clearly embarrassed about his weak emotional state. "I want to tell you something your mother told me," Hakoda said softly. "She said you can't help who you love. When you love someone, you just do." The man glanced sideways at his son. "That's why I think that what matters isn't who you fall in love with, but what you do about it. How you choose to act."

"What should I do then?" Sokka asked. "I really do care about Suki, but..."

"How can you be with her after that?"

Sokka gulped and nodded. "To answer your earlier question, I don't think I ever got over Kaya. But I know she would want me to be happy, even if that meant learning to love someone else."

"So, then, you're saying that you met someone else?" Sokka glanced up at his father quickly.

"No, no," Hakoda reassured him. "Not yet. Well... there was that girl from Ba Sing Se..." Sokka elbowed his father in the ribs, and he grunted.

Zuko found himself grinning. _There's always a girl from Ba Sing Se,_ he realized, as he recalled his own date with a pair of green eyes and a care free smile in that gigantic city. He had never realized that begging with his uncle would be something he would have _wanted _to remember.

"What I'm trying to say, Sokka, is that you shouldn't forget about her, but that you have to let yourself move on. And you have to trust yourself not to make the same mistake again. If you spend years beating yourself up about it, you'll waste years of your life, like I did."

"You were fighting, Dad," Sokka insisted. "You had to."

"Yes," Hakoda agreed. "I did. But not because of the war. Because _I _had to. Don't make the same mistake I did, Sokka. Suki is a wonderful girl. Don't ruin things with her just because the moon's out."

"But how can I be with Suki and not forget about Yue?" he asked.

"Tell her," Hakoda suggested. "Tell Suki about Yue, so she'll understand. Yue is a part of you, a part of your life. Letting her go doesn't change that fact, and so Suki deserves to know about her."

"But, it was hard just telling you," Sokka admitted.

"It doesn't have to be right away. You can tell her when the time is right for both of you. But if you don't live in the present because your worried about someone you already lost, you'll miss the chance to tell Suki the same things you never got to tell Yue. Learn from your mistake, and make the most of the time you have. That's the best advice I can give."

"I understand. Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for... you know... being here now."

Hakoda nodded. "I'll try to be here more," he promised. "Zuko!"

The prince's shoulders tensed. He thought he'd been being quiet enough!

"Stop hiding over there and come over." Zuko's head hung slightly as he approached the older man. "How much of that were you here for?"

"All of it," he admitted, glancing at Sokka. "I'm sorry."

Sokka shook his head. "No worries."

"Did... Did you really mean that?" Zuko asked, turning to Hakoda. "The part about not being able to help who you love?"

"Well," Hakoda stated, "I don't know, but Sokka's mother sure did. Kaya used to say it to me all the time."

"But, isn't that bad?" Zuko protested. "If you can't help yourself loving someone, what are you supposed to do?"

"Every situation is different," Hakoda supplied. "You have to use your own head, but... If you ask me, if you love someone, don't hesitate. In this world, with the war, we lose people all too fast. Act appropriately," he added, with a frown for both young men, and Sokka grinned back stupidly. "But don't miss your chance when it comes."

Sokka stood up. "Well, I feel better. Are those ash banana's ready?"

"Your's probably burned," Zuko told him. "But mine was delicious."

"You ate them without us?" Sokka demanded.

"Not my fault you weren't there," Zuko replied, standing up and heading back to camp, with a whining Sokka following him. "It they're so important, just cook some more!"

That night, when the fire was doused and they all went to bed, Zuko mind was full of heavy thoughts, and, for the first time in a long time, a direction. Sleep came to him as he clutched tightly a blue necklace near his beating heart.

* * *

"You've been gone for days!" Katara shouted. "We ran out of food last night, and all we had for breakfast this morning was berries! What is wrong with you guys?"

"I told you," Hakoda repeated. "Sokka hurt his ankle."

"Yeah," Sokka put in sarcastically. "But don't worry about healing me at all, even though your concern would be so nice, because I'm fine now. Nothing to fret about."

"Well good," Katara stated angrily. "Because we have a much bigger problem - we still need food!"

"I've got some," Hakoda supplied.

Zuko and Sokka stared at him with surprised faces as the man emptied out some rolls of fish, a few mole-rabbits, and some large slabs of meat that must have come from a fox-cougar or similarly sized creature.

Katara wrinkled her nose and swept water over the meat, immediately freezing it. "That should keep it from going bad. At least you got something, Dad. It might last us a week. Go get cleaned up." Hakoda waved to them as he passed Katara and entered the air temple. Then the waterbender rounded on the two remaining returners. "What were you two doing?"

Sokka paled under his sister's scrutiny. "Hey, we tried!" he protested. "It's not my fault Zuko's a crummy hunter!"

"Me?" Zuko roared, realizing that Sokka was turning on him despite the boy's assertions that he would handle Katara. "I wanted to go to town and _buy _food!"

"We don't have money!" Sokka reminded the Prince.

"So," Katara surmised. "Dad got meat, and you two returned empty handed?"

Her eyes narrowed and Sokka began sweating. He opened his mouth, but Zuko's fist forestalled him as the teenager held out a moneybag. "So I can't hunt," he grumbled. "Will this do instead?"

Katara gasped as he dropped the moneybag into her arms and it opened to reveal a majority of large, gold coins. "You had that the whole time!" Sokka shouted.

"Zuko," Katara stated serenely. "You may go. Assuming you plan to go with me to the nearest town to help carry back supplies tomorrow morning."

"What about Aang's firebending practice?"

"You two can do it on the way," Katara suggested, pulling his money bag closed and handing it back to him.

"Oh, so he's off the hook just like that?" Sokka demanded, and Katara rounded on him.

Zuko tucked the money back away as he left his friend to be berated by his sister, glad having returned to the royal palace for a time had finally payed off. As Katara's voice rose in volume behind him Sokka protested weakly, and Zuko actually grinned.

_Better him than me - for once!_


	21. Chapter 21:Ghost Stories

Author's Note:

**Trombe: Anyway considering the thought I/we never really explained our whole ideal behind this chapter... First of all The episode "the Puppet master" while very entertaining and cool did very little in progressing the storyline aside from a growth in Katara's abilities as a bender. It was more of a stand alone episode and didn't really fit well with the continuity of the story. So considering it wasn't specifically mentioned we took the liberty of actually rewriting this story AFTER the boiling rock, with Zuko along with the group to spice things up a bit. So its going to go like this. The events of the boiling rock, the puppet master, and then the southern raiders. From then I'm actually debating to rewrite the whole climax of the war from scratch. While I loved it to bits I kind of felt it could have been so much more. Heres hoping maybe I could do it some justice.  
**

_artsyelric: i spent a bunch of time reading online, short ghost stories and trying to find one that kind of fit in with avatar and zuko and all, and then a spent two whole nights with the light on, because i'm a big baby when it comes to ghost stories. normally, i go sleep in trombe's room, but i'm too far away now that i live in glendale, so i toughed it out by myself! be grateful, fans!  
_

**Trombe: Grow up you big baby.**

_artsyelric: I Won't Grow Up! XP ghosts _are_ scary TT...TT like june bugs... SPEAKING OF WHICH, THERE'S ANOTHER ONE IN MY APARTMENT! waaahh! why me, universe? i hate june bugs and scary stories..._

_ hey hey, trombe - you snore, right? can i come sleep with you again?_

**Trombe: Take a single step into my room and be prepared to see your oblivion.**

_artsyelric: waah TT...TT_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 21: Ghost Stories **

* * *

Sokka glanced around the campfire cautiously, the light making strange shadows form beneath his eyes. "Suddenly," he whispered in a hoarse voice, "they heard something down the hall in the hall in the dark. Oooooooooo..."

The boy's pitch rose higher and higher until the strange cry faded out, and he eyed his listeners with overdone intensity. "It came into the torchlight. And then they knew," he concluded, rising dramatically to his feet and drawing his black sword," the blade of Wing Fe was haunted!"

He screamed eerily.

When none of his audience moved, he eventually lowered his blade with a disgruntled look. Toph blinked twice and Katara flicked some hair out of her face. Zuko yawned, but it was the young Avatar who spoke. "I think I like 'The Man with a Sword for a Hand' better," he decided.

"I don't know," Zuko considered, "they were both pretty bad." How did it come to this? The embittered youth asked himself. What turned supposedly a trip for supplies into town extended itself to four days away from the western air temple, considering the random silly habits of the Avatar's group. Constantly excited at the chance to goof and play around the twelve year old Avatar was showing his age, which caused the prince to wonder if the young spiritual champion of the world knew the gravity of his destiny. The other young man in their group was not helping either, with his constant reliance on his ancient relics for maps and directions it was always two minutes till this or this way is quicker then that. They actually spent more time trying to figure out where they were then on finding their destination. By the time they had found a town that contained a marketplace the sun had already set.

"Oh," Sokka huffed. "You think you could tell a better story?"

And so here they were...listening to Sokka's ridiculous stories of ghosts, ghouls, and kuei-jin.

"I don't tell ghost stories," Zuko grated.

"Oh, come on," Toph prompted. "You don't know even one?"

"I grew up in a palace, surrounded by guards and servants," the prince reminded them. "What, exactly, was supposed to get me?" The earthbender shrugged, continuing to stare blindly away from him. "Besides, with my father and Azula in our family, we didn't have to look to surreal stories for horror."

Toph snorted. But Aang rolled over to face his firebending teacher. "Ah, come on Zuko." The Avatar was making use of his childish face again as he gave Zuko an extremely pleading look. "You didn't live in the palace your whole life. You spent a lot of it traveling around the world with a bunch of soldiers and sailors! Don't tell me you didn't hear any good ghost stories from them?"

"Well… maybe I did hear one…"

"Oh!" "Tell us!" "What was it?" "Come on, Zuko!"

The overwhelming enthusiasm of his group eventually had its effect on the prince and he waved them quiet. "All right, all right. I'll tell you," he agreed. "I heard this story from some Fire Nation scouts. They were sent out to do some recon in Earth Kingdom territory. While they were looking for the enemy, one of the scouts spotted something very strange moving in the distance.

"When he pulled out his telescope to get a good look at it," Zuko continued as if he was giving a report, "he saw that it was a huge creature. It was dark, but he claimed that he had never seen anything like it before. It wasn't a platypus-bear, or a boar-cupine, or even a moose-lion. He said it had huge teeth, thick fur, and red eyes, and it was over seven feet tall, but walked like a human, only hunched over."

"The Earth Kingdom has lots of strange animals," Sokka suggested.

"He also claimed it was shouting." Even though he didn't mean too, the firebender felt himself getting somewhat into the telling, and he let his voice drop a little quieter. "They weren't words, but more like… animalist cries. But not growls, like a beast. Somewhere disgustingly close between the desperate sounds a human makes and the wild sounds of an Earth Kingdom creature.

"Then," Zuko related, "the scout who told me this noticed something else moving in his spyglass. Just ahead of the beast was another one of the scouts he'd been sent out with. That man was crouched in a bush, trembling as he watched the strange creature get closer. The thing was getting closer and closer to the fellow scout, and eventually, the man either panicked or found some kind of crazy courage, because he attacked the monster. He tried to shoot it with fire, but when the blazing flames cleared, and the scout with the spyglass could see again, the beast appeared unharmed.

"At that point the report got a little unclear, because the man we talked to said he put down the spyglass and looked away. But he did say that there came the terrified screaming of someone truly in pain. When the screaming finally stopped, the scout tried to make his way over to his fellow soldier, and he got there just as the sun was rising. Only half the other soldier's body was left; the rest of him had been devoured."

"So what?" Aang interrupted, his face disgusted. "Some strange animal the man had never seen before ate him. That's the food chain for you."

"That's not it," Zuko shook his head. "Two men from his troop were already on the scene. Despite what they had all seen, and in spite of the mutilated body of their comrade, there were no footprints, claw marks, or anything else to show that the beast had been there."

"What?" Sokka choked over a bite of his food. "That's impossible! They must have been as bad of trackers as you, that's all."

"You think I'm a bad tracker?" Zuko asked ludicrously. "I'm the one who's always been able to find the Avatar!"

"He's got a point Sokka," The young Avatar chimed his agreement.

"Look you want me to tell this story or not?"

He took their silence to be a yes.

"Anyway, these guys were some of the best trackers in the army." He continued. "They said it was as if the beast had never been. No footprints, not even a leaf out of place. There was nothing except the half eaten corpse and their own memories to say that the creature had even existed. And, they had all come in from different directions, and none of them had seen it leave."

"So it just… disappeared?" Katara asked.

"Who knows," Zuko shrugged. "They never found out."

"Now that's spooky," Aang declared. "What do you think it was, Toph?"

"I don't know!" she insisted, her voice unusually high. "I lived in the Earth Kingdom my whole life and that doesn't sound like anything I've ever heard of."

Sokka pulled his knees to his chest. "I miss Suki," he muttered.

"Water Tribe slumber parties must stink," Toph chastised him. "You're such a baby."

"I am not!" Sokka growled at her, jumping angrily to his feet. "What, a guy's not allowed to miss his girlfriend?"

"Well, you could stop moping about it all day," Toph shot back. "It's _your _fault we're here anyway! You're the one who went hunting _twice _and came back with little to no food!"

"Hey!" Sokka protested. "Zuko was there both times too!"

"Yeah, but _he's _paying for us to go to town and buy some, so he's forgiven. Besides," she added, punching the prince in the shoulder, "his story was twice as good as yours. Doesn't the Water Tribe tell you guys any good campfire tales?"

"No, wait," Katara countered the younger girl. "I've got one. And this is a true Southern Water Tribe story. I heard it when I was very small, and it scared me for a very long time. It might even been enough to scare prince stoic here," she added, glancing at Zuko.

"I don't get scared," he told her dispassionately.

"Then you won't mind if I tell it," Katara assumed.

"Hold on," her brother cut her off. "Is this one of those 'a friend of my cousin knew some guy that this happened to' stories?"

"No," Katara denied, glancing into the fire. "It happened to Mom."

Silence followed her, and Sokka sat down stiffly, prepared to listen. Aang sat up as well, and Zuko shifted against the tree he was laying against. They could all sense the tension in the air that came when Katara spoke about her deceased mother.

Katara wrapped her arms around her knees and began. "One winter, when Mom was a girl, a huge snowstorm buried the whole village for weeks. A month later, Mom realized she hadn't seen her friend Mimi since the storm. So, Mom and some others went to check on Mimi's family. When they got there, no one was home. There was just a fire, flickering in the fireplace.

"While the men went out to search for them, Mom stayed in the house, hoping her friend would come back. But when she was alone, she heard a voice. 'It's so cold,'" Katara mimicked, her voice going unnaturally high. "'And I can't get warm…'"

Sokka swallowed hard when his sister's gaze moved over him, intense from recreating the spooky child's voice. Zuko felt his own jaw clenching unusually hard. Katara even looked cold, the way she huddled up against her own knees. "Mom turned and saw Mimi standing by the fire. She was blue, like she was frozen.

"Mom ran outside for help, but when everyone came back, Mimi was gone."

Sokka ducked behind a tree root, and lifted his head over it cautiously. "Where'd she go?" he asked, unable to stop himself.

"No one knows," Katara shrugged. "Mimi's house stands empty to this day. But sometimes, people see smoke coming up from the chimney, like little Mimi is still trying to get warm…" Katara's face looked almost dead as she finished.

The still, darkness of the forest seemed to press in around them, and Zuko found himself imagining a tiny, blue ghost girl, whose hands were as cold as the tundra he'd navigated. The silence stretched out and Zuko felt a shiver run unbidden up his spine.

Quite abruptly, the silence was ended by Toph. "Huh! Wait, guys! Did you hear that?"

Sokka cried out harshly at Toph's interruption, and the force of everything happening after such a long still made the rest of the campfire jump. Sokka kicked Zuko as he sprag to his sister's side, and across the fire, and Aang wasted no time in pressing himself against the waterbender either, fright evident on all three of their faces. But despite his own willies, the urgency in the earthbender's voice immediately captured Zuko's preoccupied mind. "I heard people under the mountain," she reported, standing. "And they're screaming!"

"What?" the prince asked, hoping his voice sounded less confused than he felt.

But before Toph could answer, Sokka detangled himself from his sister. "Phft," he blew off the tiny girl. "Nice try. I don't scare that easily!"

Toph glared at him. "No, Sokka. I'm serious. I hear something."

"Is it Zuko's monster?" Aang asked.

"You're all probably just jumpy from the ghost stories," Katara decided logically.

"How can screams come from under a mountain?" Zuko asked, scooting closer to Sokka and farther from the blind girl. "That doesn't make any sense."

"Neither does a monster with no tracks that eats people!" Aang protested.

Toph's eyes widened. "What?" the prince asked, keeping attune to the girl despite the ramblings of the others.

"It just… stopped," she whispered.

"All right," Aang admitted, pulling Katara harder against him. "Now I'm getting scared."

Sokka opened his mouth to say something doubtful, but before he could, someone else spoke right behind him. "Hello children."

Everyone screamed.

Even Zuko shouted as bodies trampled him. The entire campsite was trying to run away from where they'd been huddled against Katara, Aang to the far side, and Katara and Sokka barreling around right and into Zuko.

The prince found himself smashed between Katara and Toph as Aang crashed into the earthbender, and Sokka slammed his sister closer to everyone else. The earthbender gasped as the shaking avatar pressed again her, and somehow managed to slip under Zuko's arm, despite the fact that she was standing and he was sitting. She fell hard into his lap as Aang continued to push into him, still screaming. He was struggling to find the source of the mysterious voice, but Katara's fists closing tightly around his shirt was distracting.

And old lady stepped into the firelight from behind the spot the three frightened friends had just vacated, and Sokka screamed again as he caught sight of the hag's features. Katara wrapped her arms the rest of the way around Zuko's chest, and he felt his face flushing as the kicking Toph slipped farther into his lap.

But despite the woman's ghost-like appearance, she smiled congenially. "Sorry to frighten you," she greeted them. "My name is Hama. You children shouldn't be out in the forest by yourselves at night," she added sympathetically, surveying the group.

"We're travelers," Zuko informed her as Sokka pushed himself off the shaking group. "We were camping here."

"I have an inn nearby," she offered. "Why don't you come back there for some spiced tea and warm beds?"

Sokka glanced at Aang as the Avatar stood up and Katara moved slightly away from Zuko. The warrior's voice only cracked a little as he accepted, "yes, please."

"Hey," Zuko hissed, as the woman turned away. "What are you doing? We don't even know her! What if she's a spy?"

"Aang's wearing his disguise," Sokka whispered back, "and we're all in our fire nation clothes. What's the harm of good food and a comfortable bed? We're going to town for food anyway."

Zuko let his arms drop in defeat as Katara slipped out from around him. "I know what you mean," Toph agreed with his action, crossing her own arms and huffing a bit of bangs out of her face. "There's something weird…"

"Besides you in my lap?" the prince asked, raising an eyebrow.

He blinked as the girl flushed. He hadn't really expected to see Toph ever get embarrassed. But her strong words countered her face easily. "Heh, you wish," she barked, flicking his forehead painfully as she stood.

So, Zuko was left to trail the trusting group with a bright red mark on his forehead for his smart comment, and a tiny bit of nervousness still gnawing at his belly.

* * *

Fortunately, though, they reached the inn quickly, and found it to be a surprisingly pleasant establishment with a view of most of the village. The entire town was still, as if everyone was inside asleep, and it was coated with the bright light of the full moon. Hama escorted them all into the inn and light lamps. Toph and Katara were given a room, Sokka took a single, and Zuko tossed his stuff on the bed across from Aang's. True to her word, the old lady had tea brewing before the gang had finished picking their quarters. As the warm, soothing smell drifted up the stairs, Zuko began to wonder if he'd been overly suspicious of the woman, and went downstairs to join everyone after all.

"Thanks for letting us stay here tonight," Katara was saying as Zuko took a seat at the end of the table. "You have a lovely inn."

"Aren't you sweet," Hama beamed, filling Zuko's cup with the steaming tea and taking her own place across from him. "You know, you should be careful," she added, her tone concerned. "People have been disappearing in those woods you were camping in."

On Zuko's right, Sokka swallowed his tea loudly, and the prince could tell he was thinking about the stupid stories they'd been telling. The warrior glanced down the table at their host. "What do you mean disappearing?"

She set down her tea and averted her gaze. "When the moon turns full, people walk in, and they don't come out. Now, who wants more tea?" she asked, her tone drastically merry as she rise quickly. Sokka jumped and Toph elbowed him. Katara and Aang stared stoically up at the woman. Sensing their discomfort, she set the kettle down to reassure them. "Don't worry," she promised. "You'll all be completely safe here. Why don't I show you back to your rooms and we can all get a good night's rest?"

"Can't say I don't like the sound of that," Aang yawned.

"If you can sleep," Sokka teased. "Between all those creepy stories and Zuko's snoring, I wish you luck!"

"Hey," Zuko protested. "I don't snore." The group stared at him. "What?" he asked. "I don't. Do I?"

"Well," Toph changed the subject, "I think Sokka's going to be the one getting no sleep. You all saw his face when Katara was telling her story. If anyone can't sleep by themselves tonight, it's you know who!" she laughed, sliding her chair back, and patting Sokka's shoulder as she left. "Good luck, Snoozles."

"Hey," Sokka barked, drowning his tea and barreling after the earthbender, "I'll sleep just fine."

"Oooooo," Aang called, chasing Sokka up the stairs. "They always pick off the single people first!"

Katara hid a laugh behind her hand as she finished the last of her cup. "What wrong?" the old lady asked, turning a smile on Zuko. "Don't like your tea?"

"Oh, ah… No. It's delicious," he complimented, taking a big sip. _Much better than Katara's at least… _Then he glanced down at the cup. "What kind is it?" he asked, eyeing the unfamiliar brew.

"Oh, my own special mix," Hama dismissed his concern, waving the kettle affectionately in the air before turning to wash it. "I made if from local herbs I collect here. Its flavor is very unique."

"Mmm," Katara agreed. "It reminds me of the tea my gran-gran used to make. It tasted similar."

"Well," Hama smiled, collecting their cups and hanging them to dry, "I guess once you age enough, all old ladies want the same things. Good tea, warm house, and lots of young folks to spend time with. Not to mention sleep," she added with a yawn. "Kill the lamp when you leave." And with those parting words she left, though something about how she said kill rubbed Zuko the wrong way…

"Hey Katara?"

"Hmm..."

"Does... something about her feel... wierd to you?"

"What do you mean?" Her blue eyes locked with his.

"I don't know. Theres this feeling inside me, something about this whole place feels... wrong." His voice was dark and brooding; the usual Zuko behavior.

"Aren't you being paranoid?" Katara yawned, obviously not sharing his discomfort. "What harm is there to a sweet old lady, Zuko? I mean sure the location of this inn is kind of odd, but she probably just likes to be left alone."

Zuko kept his thoughts to himself after that. The natural response he had was to argue with Katara on the matter, but he was trying to change. Occasionally his opinion would clash with those of the bluest eyed girl on certain things, but right now there didn't seem to be a point in arguing. There was really no logical reason why he felt the way he did right now but something inside him was itching, a nagging feeling that just would not let go.

"So, um… I guess we should go to bed too," Katara's voice drifted across his thoughts.

Realizing that he was alone with her caught him suddenly off guard. All this time he'd been keeping himself preoccupied with the group, and since his trip with Hakoda, he'd been doing really well around her. But now there was nothing to distract him from staring at her now. He felt his heart rate increase. "Yeah," he agreed, his voice tight. "Bed sounds like a good idea."

But as he rose and headed for the stairs, the sound of Katara's chair scraping across the stone floor followed. He turned slightly at the same second she caught his arm, wrapping both of hers around it. He glanced down at her, hoping the blush he could feel rising would pass for surprise. "Sorry," she smiled crookedly. "I didn't want to be the last one here. You know, with the ghost stories and all..."

He contemplated teasing her for a moment, but somehow the thought was still too awkward for him, so he just clenched his jaw tighter. "Right." He waved his left hand, firebending the candle-lamp out.

As he climbed the stairs, the prince was distinctly aware of Katara on his arm, despite the dark. At the top, she was still holding onto his arm, the two just small enough to fit up the narrow hall. He considered firebending to give them light, but realized that if he did, she would probably both let go of his arm, and likely notice the flushed look that was still creeping over his face. Instead, he decided against it. While invigorated from Hakoda's advice it did not mean Zuko did not have his pride and honor. She was...Katara. And he was the banished prince, Zuko. Their destinies should not have entertwined in the first place. They were brought together on an uneasy alliance for the greater good. He did not know what he meant to do about this absurd feeling for Katara yet, but he did know he didn't want her finding out about it. Or anyone for that matter.

But knowing it in your head does not mean the heart can persuaded so easily.

"Ah… thanks for walking me," she smiled as they passed her door. "I feel like such a baby."

"Actually," Zuko confided, "this place is kinda creepy. Why do you think I baited your brother into taking the single rooms so easily?"

Katara laughed softly.

"So is the mighty Prince of Fire afraid of the dark too?"

"As if."

"I think its kind of cute-"

"But I can if you want me to be."

Gold and blue eyes met distinctively.

"...W-what?"

Zuko's eyes were unwavering in the darkness, his posture still as if he could not believe what he just said.

"I was joking Katara," He half-lied.

"Oh,...Hehehe. Good one."

Silence once more broke between the two, as the night crickets began to play their nocturnal symphony.

"Well...your room's right behind you," Zuko quietly suggested.

"Oh, yes. Right."She let her hand slid across his shoulders in a very effeminate pat good-night. "Sleep well," she told him, and opened the door. "Zuko?" she called as he turned to leave. He looked back, fearing, for a second, she'd noticed his awkwardness after all. "I'm glad we're friends now."

Relieved, he actually smiled back, slightly. "Yeah," he replied honestly. "Me too." He opened his own door and stepped through, closing it solidly behind him.

Aang was sitting on his own bed meditating. Zuko ignored him and started getting ready for bed. A few moments later, the Avatar opened his eyes. "Good, you're here," he declared, and then lay right down on the bed. "Good night."

"What?" Zuko asked. "That's it? Wait for me to come all that time just so that you could ignore me and go to sleep?"

"Well… yeah," Aang shrugged. "Usually I sleep with Appa, and – I'm not spooked or anything! – but I decided to wait until you were here. You know, in case _you _were afraid or anything…" he finished lamely.

"Thanks," Zuko droned sarcastically.

"You're welcome," the boy answered merrily.

Shaking his head, Zuko put out the light and climbed into his own bed. After a moment of listening to his roommate's heavy breathing, he felt his heart beat calming, and his mind began to wonder. "Hey, Aang," Zuko spoke again as he thought of his Uncle. "Do I snore?"

"Oh yeah," the airbender chuckled drearily. "But that's good."

"What? How?"

"If they kill you in your sleep," the twelve year old yawned, "I'll notice you stopped snoring and wake up."

_What a comforting thought, _the prince snorted as he rolled over and went to sleep.

* * *


	22. Chapter 22:Shoppers and Snoopers

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: whoot, this chapter Zuko get one of those picture perfect TV moments only animated characters (or extremely well shot live action) can do, where even sweat just makes the guy look hotter! what? i had to give him something to make up for leaving him out of the shopping trip! (...i don't want him to hate me...)  
_

**Trombe: He's not real, you know. Just like Peter Pan.**

_artsyelric: he's as real as rufio... ah, dante_ _basco..._

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 22: Shoppers and Snoopers  
**

* * *

"You're not what!?" Sokka demanded when Zuko revealed his plans for the next morning.

"Going shopping with you," Zuko repeated.

"But… Why?" The warrior stated at them, flabbergasted.

"Because, Sokka," Katara explained, putting a weary hand on her forehead. "This is the _Fire Nation. _Don't you think a fair amount of people are likely to _recognize_ Zuko?" Really, her brother could be so exasperating sometimes!

"So why don't we just disguise him, like Aang?" her brother suggested, grabbing the young avatar as he passed and snatching at the funny hat covering his bald head. "Arrow; no arrow," he described, yanking the hat on and off. "Avatar; random guy." He and Aang gave stupid grins and a big thumbs up to the grimacing prince.

"And how would you disguise THIS?" Zuko demanded, shoving his face in Sokka's and pointing aggressively at the giant scar covering his eye.

Sokka blinked awkwardly, then raised a finger as if he had an idea. "Ah-ha! We could…" But he seemed to think better of it, and rubbed his chin in thought. "If you…" Once again he opened his mouth to speak, then shook his head negatively and trailed off, scratching his head. "Maybe if we-"

"Oh, give it a rest, Sokka," Katara snapped, and the boy deflated visibly before Zuko's glare. But she knew Sokka's problem. "You just want him to come along so you don't have to carry as much stuff."

"Katara!" he exclaimed in mock insult. "How could you say such a thing about my dear friend Zuko? I want him along so that you have someone besides me to argue with." Aang stifled a laugh as Katara rolled her eyes and Zuko's eyebrow twitched dangerously. "What?" the warrior demanded as everyone laughed.

"Nevermind," Zuko grumbled, reaching into his pocket and tossing Sokka the large coin bag he had shown them back at camp. Katara's eyes still bulged whenever she saw it. "Here's money," the prince told them. "I'll wait here at the inn."

"Ahh, Zuko," Sokka intoned, wiggling his fingers greedily at the gold gleam emerging from the bag. "All is forgiven."

"Forgiven?" Toph asked, coming down the stairs. "Who are we forgiving?"

"Zuko," Sokka related. "He's not coming shopping with us. Too many people will recognize him."

"Why?" Toph asked.

Zuko growled loudly at the repeat events and banged his forehead on his fist. Realizing how touchy Zuko was about his scar, as well as Toph about her blindness, the waterbender was quick to intervene. "Toph," she started in that 'sympathetic mother voice' she was so good at. "Zuko has a… rather large scar on the left side of his face."

"Cool!" the tiny earthbender grinned. "So that's what everyone's always talking about… Can I touch it?" Zuko did a double take.

"Toph!" Katara squealed.

"What?" she demanded, in a strange echo of Sokka. "I was just asking…"

Aang glanced worriedly at the teammate they were leaving behind. "You really think they'll recognize you, Zuko?" he asked. "I mean, we're pretty far from the capital and all. I'm sure not _everyone _knows what you look like."

"Probably not," Zuko agreed, glancing at Katara; this had, after all, been their decision.

"But all it takes is one person," Katara finished his sentence. "We're already lucky Hama didn't put it together. The more people we meet… the higher the risk that someone will recognize him. We don't want to attract any more trouble."

"Agreed," Zuko concluded.

"Alright," Aang gave in. "If you're sure you're okay with that…"

Katara opened her mouth to say something else, thinking about how sweet it was that Aang always seemed to consider people's feelings in situations like this – unlike Toph and her brother! – but before she could, another voice came down the stairs. "Oh, good, children! You're all ready. Time to go?"

And so the group made their way to the town, Zuko remaining behind at the inn with a long list of honey-do's and other miscellaneous chores to be completed before everyone else returned. Sokka grumbled most of the walk, but once Katara had tuned him out, she found the time she spent with Hama to be quite stimulating.

* * *

The waterbender felt some kind of connection with the old woman, as if they had something in common she couldn't quite place her finger on. Maybe it was the way they both said certain words, so different from how Zuko or Fire Nation people pronounced them. Or how she seemed worldly, as Katara had now become, and often made similar connections to creatures or food that weren't originated in the Fire Nation. Whatever it was, Hama had obviously traveled in her youth, and Katara was left to wonder how much, and why. But she felt awkward asking personal questions like this, especially as she didn't want to have to tell Hama about her own past.

Which was another thing that made Katara feel comfortable around the woman who had seemed so creepy at first. She didn't ask for explanations. She didn't pry at all into their business, or even wonder why Zuko was staying home, or how five children wound up in the woods. She just accepted them easily and moved on. Which made it seem all the more invasive to ask Hama about her past. Instead, Katara and the old woman seemed to have developed a non-spoken resolve to enjoy each other's company without regard for the other's background or history. In this way, by the time the two had reached the market, they were having a strangely good time together.

"That Mister Yao seems to have a thing for you," Katara noted as they left their fifth or six stand. "Maybe we should go back and see if he'll give us some free komodo sausages."

Hama stopped as if insulted, and, for a moment, Katara worried she had said the wrong thing. "You would have me use my feminine wiles to take advantage of that poor man?" the silver haired woman asked with affront. Katara nodded hopefully. "I think you and I are going to get along swimmingly, Katara!" she decided approvingly, and Katara grinned back.

As they approached the group, Sokka was rubbing his chin as he eyed the transaction occurring behind Katara. "You won't have any ash bananas until next week?" one customer was asking a vendor.

"Well," the seller explained, "I have to send the boy to Hing Wa Island to get them, and it's a two day trip."

"Sokka," Katara interrupted, handing him the basket she and Hama had just purchased. "Come on."

As Sokka, Toph and Aang followed the two chatting women down the street, Katara couldn't help but hear the end of the conversation her brother was still focused on. "Oh, right," the man who wanted ash bananas realized heavily. "Tomorrow's the full moon." He rubbed his head nervously.

"Exactly," the grocer confided. "I can't loose another boy in the woods."

Behind her, Sokka turned suspiciously to Aang and began whispering. "People disappearing in the woods, weird stuff during full moons; this just reeks of spirit world shenanigans."

Aang nodded. "I bet if we take a walk around town we can find out what these people did to the environment to make the spirits mad," he suggested.

"And then you can sew up this whole little mystery lickety-split," Sokka concluded. "Avatar style."

"Helping people," Aang stated proudly. "That's what I do."

Katara almost forgot she had been talking to Hama she'd been listening to her companions chatting behind her so carefully, so when the inn keeper spoke she jumped a little. "Why don't you all take those things back to the inn?" the old lady suggested. "I just have to run a couple more errands. I'll be back in a little while."

"This is a mysterious little town you have here," Sokka commented, stepping between Katara to address the inn keeper.

"Mysterious town," Hama agreed cryptically, "for mysterious children."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sokka demanded as the woman turned and strode away.

"It means," Katara growled at him, displeased that he had broken the peace she and Hama had developed, "that you're a rude little jerk."

"Hey!" Sokka protested. "I am not!" Katara huffed and turned away from him. "You see?" he pointed out to Aang. "This is why I wanted to bring Zuko."

"I don't think a scapegoat would help you much now," Aang disagreed. "Besides, aren't you supposed to buy Fire Nation clothes for Suki so that we don't have to leave her behind next time?"

"Oh yeah!" Sokka shoved his baskets off to his sister and rubbed his hand greedily. "Katara, hold these! I've got some shopping to do."

Katara made an offended sound as she tried to balance the opposing baskets suspended from either end of the pole now dropped across her shoulder, but Sokka was already off, his eyes wide as he extracted Zuko's money bag. "Sokka!" she protested. "That money is supposed to be for food! Sokka?!"

* * *

_An Heir to a once great Empire reduced to nothing but a carpenter in an inn keep. I'd love to meet the god that invented Karma. _The Fire Prince contemplated his fate with an almost nonchalant attitude as he began to wedge in a loose pillar, hammering at it ever so slightly.

"C'mon... stupid... wood." The inn, while quiant and comfortable, showed it's age through years of neglect. Wooden floors creaked, pillars almost caving in, and from the looks of it some of the wood was being chewed through by fire-termites. He had quite a daunting list of tasks to do for the day.

_It's so nice to finally have a young man working around this place._

That was what old woman had told him before their departure into town. At least Hama made sure the inn was clean. Sweeping and washing the dishes were his least favorite chores to do when he worked with his uncle at the tea shop.

Still, the brooding young man could not help but ponder that something else might not be right here.

Finally lodging the wooden stake back into place Zuko wiped the perspiration from his face.

Maybe Katara had been right.

Maybe years of living under suspicion and scrutiny had made him weary of people, regardless if they were kind old ladies or beautiful doe-eyed healers who wanted nothing more than to help.

Perhaps this Hama was exactly who she said she was. Just an old woman who owned an inn.

A knock on the door brought him out of his train of thought.

"Yes?" Zuko answered curtly as he slid the front doors open.

An elderly couple stood in front of him. The man took in Zuko and seemed to realize immediately he wasn't an the owner. "Ah... I'm sorry... is the inn keeper home?"

"Um, no. I'm afraid she's not." Zuko had never been one to beat around the bush.

"Oh, well... that's too bad." The husband looked somewhat depressed at the news, and his wife seemed to take it no better.

"Dear... what do we do now?" the woman pleaded with her husband.

After a hesitant moment, Zuko decided to offer a hand. "...Is there something I could help you with?"

Normally The prince didn't like to interfere with other people's business. He already had enough problems without trying to bear other people's burdens, so why should he? The one and only time he did had earned him a town's scorn and a little boy's hatred. It was a matter he often butted heads with Katara over, like when she had insisted on saving all the prisoners from the Boiling Rock. The waterbender had a gentle heart who could not bear to see the suffering of others.

What exactly had compelled him to break his policy and offer help he did not know, but the words already left his mouth. Might as well go through with the whole ordeal.

"Where are my manners? I'm Qin Lao." The man bowed to show his respect.

"Zuko." The prince did the same; unlike the rest of the Avatar's troupe he was brought up with manners.

"And this is my wife Qin Ji." The woman nodded curteously. "It's just, ah, our son. He's been missing since yesterday and some of the town's folk said they saw him playing around the woods near this inn." Qin Lao's expression was honest, and troubled.

"We were hoping the old Inn Keeper might have seen our little boy," Qin Ji stated with worry matching her husband's in her voice. "Yun has always been a trusting lad. Everyone in the village knows him and gives him little treats and trinkets every now and then. I just don't know where he could have gone to..."

Zuko expected the woman to cry soon from how her voice was trailing off.

"I'm... sorry for your predicament... When the inn keeper gets back I'll gladly let her know."

"Thank you, young man. I guess that's all we can ask for." Qin Lao smiled sadly as he took his wife's hand in tow and the couple made their way home, leaving Zuko alone as he slid the doors closed.

A missing child in the woods... An old inn ran by an elder woman with no staff or helpers present... The gnawing feeling he had suppressed earlier had returned with an even greater fervor. If the child was in the woods yesterday, then shouldn't he and his friends have seen or heard of him? The forest was huge, to be sure, but Zuko recalled how an echo that Aang gleefully exploited as he shouted nonsensical words could be heard from a mile away. It wasn't as dense either so the trees couldn't have screened them from spotting the young boy. The child must have went missing earlier that day before they arrived in the forest.

His suspicions were not unfounded as it turned out.

Something was definitely not right with this place.

* * *

Almost an hour later they were trudging up the slope on their way back to the inn, Katara sweating slightly in the warm, Fire Nation weather as she hauled the twin baskets along. Sokka was now laden with a large basket filled with the food they had come here originally to buy, but he seemed happy enough because the entire top of it was piled up to his chin with red and yellow clothes. "I can't believe you bought her _three _outfits!" Katara was protesting again.

"I already told you," Sokka insisted, "I had to get a few because I don't know what she'll fit in, or which style she'll like." Katara rolled her eyes. "But come on, these were a steal! And don't you think Suki will look great in this one?" he repeated himself for the umpteenth time as he extracted one of the shirts from the pile and waved it around, his eyes glazing over slightly.

"I think she'll look fabulous!" Toph offered.

"Well, thank you, Toph," Sokka started. "I-" It was about there he remembered she was blind. "Oh! Fell for it again!"

The earthbender laughed somewhere between a snort and giggle. But Katara was less than pleased. "_Three _outfits, Sokka!" she reiterated.

"Can we please talk about something else?" her brother demanded as they reached the house.

"Can we stay here for a while?" Aang asked, intruding on the conversation in response to Sokka's plea.

"What?" Katara asked, startled by the sudden serious turn of the conversation. "Why? We got all the supplies we needed. That's what we came for, right?"

"Exactly," Sokka backed her up as he held the door for Toph. "And Dad and Suki and the rest are waiting for us to get back with the food. So, shouldn't we get back to camp?"

"Yeah, I know all that," Aang agreed hastily, setting his stuff on the table. "But something about this village really bugs me. I mean, I know it's Fire Nation, and we can't go around saving every little village that we come to, but somehow… I want to stay a little longer. Maybe we can help them."

"Actually," Sokka agreed, surprisingly, "I know I'm the one who always wants us to move on all fast, but I get the feeling there's something very weird going on here too. Like, all that talk about the full moon, and even the inn keep. I mean, that Hama seems a little strange, like she knows something, or she's hiding something…"

For a moment, Katara remembered Zuko saying the same thing the night before. But then she shook her head. "That's ridiculous," she rejected, striding over to the pantries to start putting the groceries away. "She's a nice woman who took us in and gave us a place to stay. I spent most of the day with her, and she was kind, and perfectly normal. In fact, she kinda reminds me of Gran-gran."

Sokka dropped his stuff on the table as he turned back to his sister. "But what did she mean by that comment 'mysterious children'?" he considered.

"Gee, I don't know," Katara sarcastically interrupted. "Maybe because she found five strange kids camping in the woods at night? Isn't that a little mysterious?"

"I don't know," Sokka contemplated, rubbing his jaw. "There's still something very strange about this whole place."

"Yeah, Katara," Aang added. "It's my job as Avatar to maintain the balance between spirit world and the living world just as much as it is to stop the Fire Nation from conquering the world. Shouldn't I at least see if there's something I can do here?"

"Well, maybe," Katara conceded. "But I still don't see what that has to do with Hama."

"She's as creepy as the rest of this town," Sokka stated. "This whole place reeks of mystery."

"Oh," Katara surmised, "and you're just the guy to solve it."

"Maybe I am..." Katara hated it when her brother got that look in his eye. "I'm gonna take a look around…"

"You're what?" she protested, astounded at her brother's disregard. "You can't do that!" Even for Sokka, this felt low!

But as the Water Tribe warrior strode to the backdoor, Zuko came in, and the two bumped into each other. Katara stopped berating Sokka for a second when her eyes caught on Zuko as his frame filled the door. He had been working in the yard, and small droplets of sweat covered his bare chest and clung to his hair. She forgot completely what she had been saying as he hefted the hammer he'd been using and glared at the boy who had just tried to run him over. Then his gaze turned to her, and his face softened slightly. Suddenly, she got the chilly feeling she often had when he was with her. The one that made her think, somehow, he knew something dangerous; a secret he hadn't told her yet. The way he looked at her was all too familiar, and she felt as if she had been stopped dead in her tracks. Her mouth opened, but no words came out.

Fortunately, Aang was already speaking, saving her from looking like a frog-fish with a gaping jaw. "I think Katara's right, Sokka," the young Avatar admitted. "I want to know what's going with this town as much as anyone, but maybe snooping around the house isn't the right way to go about it."

But Sokka seemed to ignore Aang as he glanced up at Zuko. "Did Hama come back yet?" he asked.

The prince shook his head. "I haven't seen her all day. I just finished all the chores. What are you guys talking about?"

"Sokka thinks that Hama's hiding something because of that rumor of people disappearing at the full moon," Katara explained quickly. "He wants to search her house before she gets back."

Toph strode over to the door beside Zuko and Sokka and kicked her heel hard into the earth outside it. "She's not in the house," the earthbender reported. "But she should be back soon. You took quite a while buying stuff for Suki."

But at Toph's pronouncement, Sokka pushed himself to his feet and made for the stairs.

"Sokka!" Katara protested, running after him. "Sokka, what are you doing? You can't just snoop around someone's house!" she added, darting up the stairs after him, and hearing the rest of the group follow.

"It'll be fine," he dismissed her, opening a door and peering sneakily through it.

Katara felt her temper rising. "Oooh! Zuko!" The prince straightened at the way she barked his name. "Stop him!"

"Why?" the oldest boy demanded.

"Because," she explained in a harsh whisper. "You can't possible think he's justified in this-"

"Actually," Zuko admitted, "I already told you I'm kind of suspicious of Hama too."

"What?" Katara barked, having never expected the prince to take it this far.

He was unfaltering in his resolve. "I'm pretty sure Sokka's right. There's something she's not telling us."

"Oh," Katara grumbled, "you're one to talk."

"What?" he asked, not understanding, or maybe not hearing her clearly.

But she flushed at his request to repeat it, not having meant for him to hear the comment to begin with. "Well," Sokka declared triumphantly, turning back to his sister. "That makes it two for, two against. If you and Aang want to wuss out, be my guests. But if we're putting it to a vote; Toph, what say you?"

"Me?" Toph echoed. "I don't care either way."

But Katara spoke up before the blind girl had a chance to make a decision. "It doesn't matter what Toph thinks – this is Hama's house you're raiding! And, she could be home any minute!"

"True," Toph agreed, stomping on the second story floor. "I can't sense her coming when I'm standing on wood."

But Sokka ignored them, sliding the door to the room he was checking closed, as if finding it satisfactorily clear of any oddities. Katara pushed past Zuko as her brother started down the hall. "Sokka, you're going to get us all in trouble," she chided as she fell into step beside Aang. "And this is just plain rude!"

"I'm not finished yet," he blew her off again, grabbing the door handles to a hall closet.

"What about you?" Katara demanded, rounding on Zuko. "You're a prince! Don't you have any manners?"

Zuko glanced at Toph and shrugged. "Oh, come off it, Sugar Queen," the small girl protested. "I'm a 'lady', and we all know _I_ don't have any manners! Don't lump princey here and me in with those stiff-necked nobles."

"Humph," Katara snorted.

"Urg!" Sokka groaned, tugging harder on the closet doors. "Come on!" And whatever Katara was going to say next was cut off as Sokka gave a startled cry and tumbled backward into the hall as the closet swung open. "Ah!"

Aang jumped and shouted along with Sokka as tons of puppets fell forward, dangling out of the closet, their lifeless faces inches from the water tribe boy, as he drew his sword. Toph jumped because everyone else had, and even Katara had to admit she was startled. Zuko's eyes narrowed suspiciously as he observed the incriminating puppets.

"Okay," Aang acknowledged, "that's pretty creepy."

"So, she's got a hobby," Katara admitted, hurrying to close the doors over the puppets. "There's nothing weird about that." She felt the need to explain off Hama's oddities as if they were normal, lest she be proved wrong and Sokka right, but even she was starting to get a little spooked now. She definitely didn't want to continue. But Sokka had already slid his sword home and was starting up the stairs to the third floor. "Sokka!" she insisted. "Sokka, you've looked enough! Hama _will_ be back soon."

"Just an ordinary, puppet-loving inn keeper, huh?" he demanded, over the sound of his grunts and creaking wood noises. "Then why does she have a locked door up here?"

The group thundered up the attic stairs after him, each intrigued in their own way. Katara was just annoyed. "Probably to keep people like you from snooping through her stuff!" she accused, growing more and more flustered.

"We'll see," Sokka predicted, dropping down to peer intently through the key hole while Zuko peered curiously around the attic. "It's empty," her brother revealed. "Except for a little chest."

And then Toph said exactly the wrong thing. "Maybe it's treasure!"

Katara could almost see her brother's obsessive impulse increase tenfold at the mere mention of the word. He turned immediately back to the elated Toph. "Can I take it that means you want to keep snooping?" he asked the girl.

"Oh yeah," she confirmed.

"Haha, Katara!" he declared. "Three to two! You've been outvoted."

"This isn't a vote!" she protested. "It's about morals." But Sokka had already turned away from her and drawn his sword. "Sokka, what are you doing?" she hissed as he began fidgeting with it and trying to unlock the bolt. "Haven't you heard I word I've said? You're breaking into a private room!"

"I have to see what's in there," he insisted, pausing only momentarily.

With one final twist of his sword, the lock clicked audibly and door swung open, letting light from the window stream into the dark attic. Sokka stepped through excitedly, Toph on his heels. Katara shivered slightly, growing more nervous every second, but Aang stepped past her. "We shouldn't be doing this," he warned, taking up her torch.

But Sokka ignored the Avatar just as he had his sister, and Katara was forced to step through the door as well or block Zuko's entrance, and in his current, sweaty state, she had no desire to bump him. Inside, Sokka tugged uselessly at the box, which they could now tell had been locked shut. "Maybe there's a key here somewhere?" he theorized, glancing around the room hopefully.

"Oh!" Toph exclaimed, crushing Katara's hope that the locked chest would put a stop to her brother's insanity. "Hand it over."

The earthbender took the chest, and removed the meteorite bracelet Sokka had given her from the spare metal not used on his sword. Closing her fist around the bracelet, she quickly molded it into a key with her earthbending and inserted it in the lock.

"Neat trick," Zuko commented dryly as he watched her work, and Katara glared at him angrily.

But Sokka was too anxious to be impressed. "Come on, come on!" he urged the blind girl.

"This isn't as easy as it looks," she growled as Sokka peered curiously over her shoulders.

"Guys," Aang tried again, "I don't know about this… I mean, I know I said I wanted to solve this mystery and all… but I thought we were gonna do it, you know… Avatar style."

"We _are_," Sokka insisted. "You're style is to trust me, and this is how we do it Sokka style."

"Hey!" Toph protested, wiggling her key. "I'd say this is pretty Toph style."

"Fine," Sokka waved his arms dramatically. "It's _Team _Avatar style." Toph spared a second to glare at Sokka for his revival of the old name.

"This is crazy!" Katara declared. "I'm leaving."

"Suit yourself," Sokka dismissed her. "Do it, Toph."

She nodded, and started attempting to open it again. But the moment Katara turned away, there was a distinctive click as Toph's makeshift key turned in the chest lock, and the earthbender gave a thumbs up in acknowledgement of her success. Sokka immediately smashed over her shoulder, and for all of Aang's 'this isn't right' talk, the Avatar was barely a step behind, pressing against the warrior with childlike curiosity. Katara might have blamed Aang, if she hadn't, against her better judgment, somehow found herself squeezing in between her brother and the Avatar to get a look at what new, frightening thing the self declared detective might have discovered about the inn keeper. Beside her, Zuko palmed Aang's bald head as he pushed the Avatar down a few inches to get a glimpse of the mysterious treasure chest himself, though his expression was much less anxious than Sokka's.

But before the struggling group could lift the lid, a new voice cut their searching short with terrifying abruptness. "I'll tell you what's in the box," Hama's voice echoed through the room.

Sokka made an awful squeal, like someone had poured ice down his shirt, and Katara felt cold guilt run up her spine as well. Zuko stiffened again, like he had when she assaulted him in the hall, and his jaw clenched so tight she could hear his teeth grinding. Aang let out hiss and jumped three feet into the air, luckily not visible to Hama behind Zuko's height, and shoved his hat back over his arrow with alarm. Only Toph seemed unsurprised, though she did turn guilty around to face the inn keeper with the rest of them, Sokka hiding the chest behind his back as if somehow that would make their crime less obvious. But as Hama strode out into the light and the realization of what they had really done set in on the group, the warrior held the box out to the old woman, hanging his head in shame.

Hama took it, her face serious, but instead of turning on them angrily, or stashing the box away, she held it out in front of herself and opened the lid. The group watched her, curiosity still heavy over them all, as she reached inside it and drew her hand out. Sokka's legs trembled beside Katara and she braced herself for the worst as Hama drew out...

"An old comb?" Sokka wilted in disappointment, apparently convinced that it would be something even more strange and suspicious than the puppet.

But Hama smiled simple as she fondled the blue, bone-toothed comb. "It's my greatest treasure," she confided. "It's the last thing I own from growing up in the Southern Water Tribe."

And Katara knew if Sokka had been expecting a shock, they had just gotten it.


	23. Chapter 23:Southern Waterbenders

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: water tribe food sounds like it's full of vegetables... bleh. some veggies i like, like corn on the cob and celery in ranch and stuff, but i don't think i'd like sea prunes at all... i don't even like normal prunes - or any kind of sea food for that matter! (wait, are prunes a fruit? i don't care, i still don't like them!)  
_

_plus, i bet water tribe people eat seaweed, like the japanese. eeeww... seaweed..._

**Trombe: You're so screwed when you vist Japan. BTW, I actually wanted to split this story into another title, you know considering we've finished the boiling rock arc, rather then making this into one uber long story. But...what's done is done. So might as well stick with it.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 23: Southern Water Benders**

* * *

Zuko glanced sideways at the Water Tribe siblings as Hama made her revelation. The shock on their faces was evident. Sokka looked as if he was still trying to process it, and Katara looked as if she was seeing something she had lost a long time ago, surprise and affection painted across her face like it had been when her father had first stepped off the gondola. Somehow, he knew, she was already attached to this old woman.

"You're from the Southern Water Tribe?" she finally whispered.

"Just like you," the old lady nodded.

Zuko felt his senses go on alert, but Katara asked the question before he could, her voice still full of awe. "How did you know?"

"I heard you talking around your campfire," she admitted. "And I've never met a person in the Fire Nation with dazzling blue eyes like the two of yours."

Katara glanced at her brother, and then flushed prettily. "But," Sokka wondered, "…why didn't you tell us?"

"I wanted to surprise you," Hama apologized, her voice suddenly much warmer and familiar than it had been before. "I bought all this food today so I could fix you a big, water tribe style dinner. Of course, I can't get all the ingredients I need here," she explained sadly. "But… ocean kumquats are a lot like sea prunes, if you stew them long enough."

Aang made a strange, grimacing expression and stuck his tongue out behind Katara's back at the mention of ocean kumquats. But when Katara turned towards him, he quickly straightened his face and smiled in a supporting manner instead. "Great," he voiced, but Zuko could still hear the distaste in his tone.

"I knew I felt a bond with you right away," Katara was insisting as she turned back to the old woman.

"And I knew you were keeping a secret," Sokka added haughtily. "So, I guess we're both right." He leaned towards his sister at the end to rub in the comment. Katara glared at him, and then fisted his shoulder. "But," he amended, as he rubbed the upcoming bruise, "I'm sorry we were sneaking around."

"Apology accepted," Hama forgave them. "Now, let's get cooking!"

The two followed the old lady as she beckoned them from the room.

"Well," Toph whispered to Zuko as they fell into place in the back of the group. "Another Water Tribe member. That's surprising."

"Yeah." The prince glanced sideways at the tiny earthbender as he grumbled. "And not at all suspicious."

"I don't know," Aang whispered back at them, obviously not picking up on Zuko's sarcasm. "I was hoping that whatever was eerie about Hama would be connected with the town's full moon problem somehow, but… I think there's still a lot we need to know."

"Right," the earthbender agreed in a surly manner. "But do we try and tell Madam Fussy-Britches over there before or after Hama cooks her a giant, home-style feast?"

Aang took one glace at Katara, and grabbed a watermelon. "I think I need to feed Momo." And just like that, he was off again, escaping quickly out into the night.

Toph huffed some of the bangs out of her face. "He always runs away." Zuko blinked at the girl, who finally stomped away from his silence to join the others in the kitchen. "And we may not be fancy people, Princey, but I'd still recommend you go find a shirt!" she called back as she left.

Zuko muttered to himself and started back up the stairs in search of new apparel.

* * *

"So, Zuko," Toph started in at dinner. "Did you hear Sokka wasted a ton of your money on buying _three_ sets of Fire Nation outfits for his girlfriend?"

"Toph," the water tribe boy hissed, making silencing motions with his hand. "Cut it out!"

But Zuko shrugged nonchalantly beneath his fresh shirt. "So what? It was my father's money, not mine. However Sokka wants to spend it is none of my concern."

"Humph." Toph crossed her arms dejectedly in front of herself. "And Sugar Queen was so sure you'd be mad too…"

"You tattler!" Sokka whined angrily, but Toph took no notice.

"Will you all stop squabbling!" Katara interjected as she brought over the food. Ever since Hama had revealed that she was from the Southern Water Tribe, Katara had eyes only for the old lady and the strange smelling food they were concocting. Aang had slipped back into distancing himself from the siblings, but at least he was staying near Toph so he didn't go all solitary on them. But if Katara's focus on the old woman made Aang feel left out, it didn't bother the prince at all. Zuko had just noticed it, and he kept telling himself that was all. "Can't we all just have a nice dinner for once?" the girl added, putting her hands on her hips angrily.

"You don't have to make it sound like you're our _mom, _Katara," Toph huffed.

"Oh, let's _not _start that again." The waterbender disengaged from the taunt, shooting a pointless glare that was totally wasted on the blind girl.

Sokka was already stuffing his mouth, so he seemed to have no retort as his sister took her seat. "You should try this," he managed around a mouthful of food, holding out the bread roll to Zuko. "It's good."

"Sokka!" Katara swatted her brother's hand. "At least wait for Hama."

Fortunately, the starving warrior didn't have to wait long, because at that moment the kitchen door swung open to reveal the old lady. "Dinner's ready!" Hama called merrily as she made her way to the table with a large amount of soup.

"Good!" Sokka declared. "Let's eat!" And he began piling his plate high with food the likes of which Zuko had never seen before. "What are you waiting for?" he asked the prince around a mouthful. "Eat!"

Zuko watched in distaste as the scrawny boy began loading food onto his plate for him, filling it with the foreign smelling food. When Sokka finally stopped, there was far more than Zuko knew he could eat, and he could barely see the rest of the people around the mound of food from where he sat at the end of the table. After a few more promptings from his over anxious and nearly choking friend, he eventually picked something safe looking and began to sample it.

Across the table Zuko caught Aang grimace again as he leaned towards Toph. "I'd steer clear of the ocean kumquats if I were you," he recommended the blind girl.

"I thought they were sea prunes?" she corrected.

Aang glanced down at his plate with a shudder. "Close enough."

Even as he said it, the taste of the bite Zuko had just taken hit him hard like a tidal wave. He glanced at the prune like substance in his hand, and, completely disregarding his manners, he spit it loudly back onto overly filled plate. Aang glanced at him sympathetically. "See?" The Avatar offered him a cup of water.

"Ah!" Zuko shook his head, keeping his voice low so Katara and Hama wouldn't hear it. "Disgusting."

"Who wants five flavor soup?" Hama asked from the opposite end of the table, and Sokka and Katara's hands immediately went up on Zuko's left.

The prince glanced cautiously to the right side of the table to make sure Aang's hand was up this time before raising his own. As soon as everyone had requested some, Hama waved her hand over the serving bowl, and the soup rose up, dispersing evenly through the air and serving itself to all six members at the table.

Katara was staring delightedly at her suddenly full bowl as she exclaimed, "You're a waterbender! I've never met another waterbender from our tribe!"

Despite the strange, distasteful food, Zuko found himself enjoying how happy Katara seemed. He knew from the prison cells he had shared with the girl that she had deep scars from the Fire Nation soldiers who wiped out her tribe's benders, so he could understand how much meeting a southern waterbender must mean to the girl. It would be almost like when he met the firebending masters. The kind of experience one never forgets. Even if Hama was a creepy old lady in his book…

But Hama was watching Katara with sad eyes. "That's because the Fire Nation wiped them all out. I was the last one." She had a faraway look as she said it, one that made her seem, somehow, even older.

Then Sokka asked the question Zuko had been dying to ask all night. "So... how did you end up out here?"

Hama's face set with determination. "I was stolen from my home." With that one sentence, the tone of the entire table had turned darker. This was the true mystery behind Hama, a waterbender living secretly among firebenders. Everyone seemed on edge. "It was over sixty years ago when the raids started," the woman recalled. "We soon learned what the black snow meant."

"Soot," Sokka whispered, as if he recalled it too. "Soot and water."

"Yes," Hama nodded. "From Fire Nation fleets, carrying soldiers and nets. They came again and again, each time rounding up more of our waterbenders and taking them captive." Zuko could almost see the story come alive as she spoke. He had stood in Katara's village, exactly where this occurred, and he recalled the way the smoke at the North Pole had mixed with the soot from the Fire Nation fleet. He could tell from Katara and Sokka's eyes they could picture it too. "We did our best to hold them off," Hama explained. "But our numbers dwindled as the raids continued. Soon there was no one else left. Just me."

She shuddered to a stop, and Katara lay a hand across hers where it rested on the table. Hama looked up at her and smiled. "Then what?"

"Finally," Hama revealed, "I too was captured. I was led away in chains; the last waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe."

Through Zuko's travels he had seen many times the errors of his self justified nation. He had seen the devastation war brought to the Earth Kingdom, from the smallest farming family, to the greatest Earth Kingdom cities. He had stood in remains of the air temples, and wondered dimly about the forgotten lives no one but Aang could remember any longer, wiped completely away by Fire Nation troops. This was one of those moments for him. The Northern Water Tribe had dwelt in a city of ice he had never before seen the likes of. A city of warriors untouched by the Fire Nation. But in contrast, The Southern Water Tribe had been pillaged, and nothing remained of it but the small, pathetic village where he had first found Aang and his friends. This was how it had happened, one person at a time. This was how Katara had lost her mother. How she had lost her culture. As Hama continued, the story became more and more painfully real to him, and the reason for Katara's passionate hatred of his people intensified in his mind.

He pulled himself out of his inward reflections when Katara's chair scraped across the floor as she stood. She placed her hands on Hama's shoulders in a comforting manner as the old woman continued. "They put us in terrible prisons here in the Fire Nation." Her head hung, showing her years, and the weight of her past. "I was the only one who managed to escape."

Across the table, Katara's eyes were filled with pain.

A sick feeling rose in Zuko's stomach that had nothing to do with the sea prunes he'd eaten. It wasn't until everyone had turned to look at him that he realized he had risen from his chair. Their eyes on him weren't accusing in the slightest, but he felt as if they should be. The room felt suddenly far too cramped. "I don't think I'm hungry after all," he settled for as he strode away from the table and closed the door behind himself.

A small silence followed his exit, and he leaned against the wall on the other side of the room, letting the cool, night air fill his lungs. Inside, he could still hear them talking. "How did you get away?" Sokka was asking, without a break in his thoughts, as if Zuko's passing had never occurred. "And why did you stay in the Fire Nation?"

Even his curiosity about Hama's strange situation couldn't make him want to stay and hear what she said. But thankfully Hama seemed unable to continue as well. "I'm sorry," the old woman's voice drifted out of the window. "It's too painful to talk about anymore."

"We completely understand," Katara was assuring her. And then she said the line Zuko knew was coming, the line he'd been waiting for. "We lost our mother in a raid."

"Oh you poor things," Hama's words drifted to him from much father away than through the window.

"I can't tell you what it means to meet you," Katara was saying now. "It's an honor. You're a hero." He'd been right; it was just like meeting the dragons had been for him.

"I never thought I'd meet another southern waterbender," Hama confided, her words still seeming to come to Zuko from miles away. "I'd like to teach you what I know so you can carry on the southern tradition when I'm gone."

"Yes! Yes, of course. To learn about my heritage… would mean everything to me."

* * *

Zuko strode away before he could hear any more.

There was no where to go but the house or the stable, and even in his unhappy state he felt uncomfortable leaving the grounds in case someone recognized him. So he let his feet carry him to the stables where he collapsed in the hay. Momo chattered as he did so, but the prince ignored him, and eventually the lemur flew off through the window.

Honor and Duty.

Benevolence and Respect.

Courage and Honesty.

Righteousness.

Principles and virtues that the Fire Nation were founded upon, according to the ancient teachings of the Glorious Strategist, Yuu Law.

And none knew that better then a Son of Fire.

Yet war changes everything. A fabled golden age of peace came to a crashing end, a once noble nation corrupted by its own ambition, and those loved by the wind were burned to ashes for their so-called crime, leaving nothing but the ruined temple where his own group now cowered. All of this in the span of one lifetime.

Zuko could feel the fleeting scars on his back, the ones he suffered in the infamous prison. The pain was no longer there but there was a certain sensation to it, something that never really went away. One thing was certain. The whippings did not hurt as much as the shame that weighed heavily in his heart.

_My gentle little boy; my little Zuko. _

He could remember his mother, Princess Ursa.

_Weakling._

He could hear his father's voice drowning out his mother's sweet one.

_All's fair in war, Zuzu. Mercy is for the weak, _Azula's voice joined theirs.

Before he had trouble shutting out their voices, but it no longer detracted him from what he knew to be true. Yet tonight, with a survivor right in front of him from his people's atrocities, the voices seemed louder then usual.

After a time, the stable door creaked open, and Aang appeared, the lemur's head poking out of his Fire Nation disguise. Momo ducked back into the Aang's tunic, and Zuko didn't even bother asking how the Avatar knew where he'd gone. If his hiding place hadn't been obvious to the other boy, the lemur had surely ratted him out. "Hey," Aang greeted him tentatively. "You, ah… should have stayed. The dessert was actually pretty good."

Zuko grunted dispassionately. Perhaps the boy sensed Zuko wasn't ready to talk yet, because he settled himself down in a pile of hey opposite the prince and lay back patiently. Zuko eyed him curiously. "Isn't it usually Sokka who comes after people for these little talks?" the older boy asked.

Aang shrugged. "Want me to go get him?"

"No," Zuko answered quickly. "That's not necessary. I just don't understand why every one of you always wants to talk."

"You… don't want to talk?" Aang asked.

"What I mean is… before, when I was against you guys, I always had to work everything out for myself. Uncle would tell me stuff, but then he would leave me alone to figure out what I had to do myself."

"Was it better that way?"

"Just… different, I guess." The prince looked away. "Everything here is different."

"So why'd you leave the table?" Zuko turned towards the young Avatar. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Aang assured him, quickly holding his hands to show he didn't mean it. "But if you want to… ah… I'd really like to listen."

Zuko shook his head, then leaned back, forming his words. "It's just… It's like they're in another world!" He realized that'd come out a lot harsher than he meant it to - a common problem for him. But now that he was talking he figured he might as well continue. "I mean… no wonder she hated me before!"

"I don't think Katara _actually_ hated you at all." Aang's voice took on the extremely honest quality often displayed, the one that was so hard to ignore. "She was just really... sad. She's really a forgiving person if she's given a chance…"

Zuko pressed his hands again his forehead. "Everywhere I go I see all the destruction that this war has created, that the Fire Nation has created. How am I supposed to deal with that? How am I supposed to…" He trailed off, losing the focus; how was he supposed to talk to Aang about how he felt about the girl Aang liked?

"Maybe you're not supposed to, you know… make up for it," Aang offered. "I mean, I can't make up for the one hundred years I abandoned the world. It's not pleasant to think that, but it is true. All I can do is work harder to do right in the future, and hope that it would somehow be enough."

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Zuko asked.

Silence was shared between the two.

"...What's done is done. What will be, will be. But we are here in the now. Shape your own destiny, Zuko," Aang simply stated.

The Fire Prince had no answer to that. He knew the Avatar was right. But knowing something and putting it into actual practice were two entirely different matters altogether.

His shame for his people. His newfound feelings for a blue eyed-girl. His guilt over Mai's love. His regret with his Uncle. His contempt for his father. Zuko's feelings raged inside like an angry typhoon.

_...Katara..._

Ever since he'd come back from the Boiling Rock and realized he had a _slight_ attachment to her, he'd been glorifying the fact that she was treating him as a friend, deluding himself into thinking that he'd come to understand her, and that somehow that meant they could eventually be...whatever it was that went beyond friends. It was only a half-formed day dream, but he had been trying to live for the moment, like Hakoda had suggested, and enjoy things as they came, without thinking too hard about the future. Now that he saw exactly what he was up against, the true depth of the pain and hatred that his country had put her through, he wondered how much of that gap could ever really be breached.

And Aang just said to keep trying.

_Would he still say that if he knew what I was really thinking about her?_ Zuko wondered, glancing over at the young Avatar as he swung his feet carelessly.

"Come on, Zuko," the boy suggested. "Let's go back. I've known Katara for a long time, and I can guarantee that she wasn't blaming you for anything Hama said back there. And if she wasn't blaming you, what's the point in blaming yourself, huh?"

Zuko made a noncommittal sound that Aang must have taken as agreement, because he plunged right on. "Why don't we see if they still have some of that milk custard left? If Sokka hasn't eaten it all, we could smuggle some up to our room and see if we can't brainstorm any ideas on this 'full moon monster' that's supposed to come out tomorrow night."

Zuko allowed himself to be led off by Aang enthusiasm and tried to leave the discontent thoughts behind. But somehow he knew they would continue to hang over his head like a dark cloud for a while longer. Thoughts like those always did in his experience…

It was only after his head hit his pillow that he remembered he was supposed to ask about the missing boy...

* * *

The next morning Katara awoke with a kind of excitement she hadn't felt since she first arrived at the Norther Water Tribe to begin training. Today she was going to learn waterbending from a real, southern waterbending hero. (Or heroine, as the case may be.) So it was with great care that she dressed and fed herself, and even greater anticipation that she awaited Hama's arrival and followed the aged waterbender out into the outskirts of town.

"Good morning, Katara dear," the woman greeted her as they walked. "Did you sleep all right?"

"Oh yes. It was so kind of you to offer us your inn. Your beds are very comfortable."

"I'm glad." The old woman smiled. "Because we have a lot of work to do today, and I wanted to make sure you were well rested."

Katara nodded excitedly. "I can't wait."

But it wasn't until they were well clear of the village that Hama begin her instruction. "Growing up at the south pole," the inn keeper finally began, "waterbenders are totally at home surrounded by snow and ice and seas. But, as you've probably noticed on your travels, that isn't the case wherever you go."

"I know!" Katara jumped in, eager to show she was no novice. "When we were stranded in the desert, I felt like there was almost nothing I could do."

"That," Hama agreed, "is why you have to learn to control water wherever it exists."

"I've even used my own sweat for waterbending," Katara revealed, recalling the time she and Toph were imprisoned as a trap for Aang.

"That's very resourceful, Katara," Hama complemented her, and Katara beamed, feeling as if the other woman's praise was worth all the trouble she had been in back then. "But did you know," Hama continued, "you can even pull water out of thin air?"

Katara blinked. "But… air is an entirely different element-"

"Different?" Hama repeated. "No, child. The whole world is one being, and water is everywhere within it, if you know how to look." She waved her hand through the air in a large, arching circle, and, as if from no where, water began forming on her fingertips. Her hand stopped between them, and the droplets began to freeze over, like extra long fingernails made of ice. "You've got to keep an open mind, Katara," she advised. "There's water in places you never think about."

Katara watched in awe as she flexed her hand, and then spun, burring the watery nails like darts into a distant tree. The five resounding thuds confirmed that the ice, which had been no more than air moments before, was as real and as solid as anything.

"That was amazing!" she gushed. "Please, show me how."

"There's really nothing to it," Hama replied. "Once you know the water is there, any bender can do it. Give it a try."

Katara nodded, and then took a deep, relaxing breath, visualizing the water in the air. She began to move in a bending form, and, after a few positions, she realized she could feel it! Tiny, hardly noticeable particles of water were in the air all around her. Hama must have realized that she sensed them, because she spoke then. "Good. That's good, Katara. Now, simply form them together…"

Katara struggled to pull enough of the tiny particles together to create waternails the way Hama had, and, in a very slow manner, they began to form. Moving through the steps, she bent as much of the water as she could onto her fingertips, then opened her eyes. "It's there!" she exclaimed, half surprised to see she had succeeded at all. But then her face fell. "Mine is a lot thinner than yours."

Hama laughed, her voice deep. "Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it in no time." But Katara continued to look crestfallen, used to succeeding quickly. It felt like learning the water whip with Aang all over again. Hama seemed to sense her mood. "Katara, it took me years to be able to bend the water in the air at all. The fact that you could do it on your first try is astounding as far as I am concerned. I am happy to be teaching such a talented student."

Katara perked up at her mentor's words. "No, no," she insisted. "Honestly, it's only because I have you to show me. Without your teaching, I don't think I could have done this either."

Hama smiled, then turned, beckoning Katara with her hand. "Come this way," she called. "There is another place I want to show you."

Katara followed after Hama, now distinctly aware of the water particles drifting in the breeze around her. How strange that she had never noticed them before. She wondered what else this woman had learned in all her years of traveling.

They walked for almost an hour. Eventually, they came into another clearing, and Katara gaped. It was full of bright red flowers, all in full bloom, as far as the eye could see. It was amazing. Katara had never seen so many blooming flowers in one place before. In the South Pole, flowers were a rare beauty, and even in all her traveling, she had never seen them in the abundance that they grew here, on the humid islands of the Fire Nation. "Wow," she vocalized her thoughts. "These flowers are beautiful."

"They're called fire lilies," Hama informed her, gazing out at the red petals herself. "They only bloom a few weeks a year, but they're one of my favorite things about living here."

"How lucky that I came at the right time to see them," Katara noted.

"But they're more than just pretty flowers," Hama continued. "Like all plants, and all living things, they're filled with water."

Katara thought she knew where the old woman was going with this one. "I met a waterbender who lived in a swamp," she remembered. "And he could control the vines by bending the water inside them. Are you going to show me something like that?"

Hama turned around, the lilies bright behind her, and shook her head. "You can take it even further," she whispered, and, with a spinning motion, water rushed up from the plants and bent to her will, creating three sharp waves that cut completely through a stone behind Katara.

The motion was so fast Katara had almost missed parts of it. But as the rock fell away in clean pieces, she felt truly impressed. "That was incredible!" she exclaimed, but as she looked around, she noticed something else. All the lilies which had been beautiful and full of life just moments before, were now dead, brown and wilting in a perfect circle around the waterbenders. "Shame about the lilies though…"

"They're just flowers," Hama dismissed her concern. "When you're a waterbender in a strange land, you do what you must to survive."

"I don't think I need to try that one to understand it." Katara had no desire to ruin the field, even if they were just flowers.

"Don't be afraid of it," Hama reassured her. "It may seem brutal, but a move like this is only to be used when it is truly necessary. I am sure a girl like you, with a kind spirit such as I have seen in you, will have the wisdom to know when to use it. If I didn't think so, I would not have shown you."

"Thank you," Katara smiled. "I feel honored to have learned these things from you. It all meant… a great deal to me."

"As it did to me," Hama agreed. "But I am not done yet. There is still something else I want to show you. Tonight I'll teach you the ultimate technique of waterbending."

"Tonight?" Katara asked. "We still have a few more hours of daylight. Why not now?"

"It can only be done during the full moon," Hama explained. "When your bending is at its peak."

"But," Katara hesitated, "isn't that dangerous? I though people have been disappearing around here during the full moon."

"Oh, Katara," Hama soothed her. "Two master waterbenders beneath a full moon? I don't think we have anything to worry about."

Somehow, that sounded strangely ominous.


	24. Chapter 24:Search and Rescue

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: don't worry people, the story may be taking it time on the zutara, but i think the anticipation of something is what makes it actually good. while zuko and katara do have a relationship strongly built on passion, trombe and i agree that rushing into it is one of the biggest mistakes zutara writers make. zutara has to be allowed to grow, or it just takes some of the meaning out of it._

_but i think that if you're still feeling you want more zutara at the end of this chapter, you may be extremely happy in two chapters... so keep reading! and enjoy the slightly darker interpretation of the puppetmaster while the relationship develops...  
_

**Trombe: Man...its like the one thing we keep our readers holding their breath for. The awkward transition of zutara love. Gotta love it. Oh and did any of you readers caught on the virtues that we associated with the Fire Nation? Code of bushido, baby. You know considering the Fire Nation seems to be an amalgram of chinese and japanese influences.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 24: Search and Rescue  
**

* * *

"How did I get roped into this again?" Zuko asked, trying to keep his face turned away from the road as much as possible, a long cowl shielding his eyes away from the world.

"Just chill," Sokka advised.

"Yeah," Toph added, kicking the ground so that a rock rose up behind Zuko, knocking him off his feet and onto it. "Take a load off."

He glared at the earthbender. "Don't do stuff like that! Someone could be here-"

"No one's here," Toph insisted. "Well, there is someone coming, but they're still about a five minute walk from us, that direction," she added, pointing without looking. "Probably down the path."

"Wow, look at this view!" Aang called from the edge of the path. "You can see all the way to the ocean!"

"Wow, you're right Twinkle-toes!" Toph exclaimed. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Stop that," Aang groaned. "You know what I meant."

"Eh…" Sokka considered, still crouched a ways away from Aang, apparently studying a small, yellow patch of flowers. "I still liked the view from Master Piandao's place better. It had little waterfalls..."

"Oh, come on," Aang insisted, waving at the scenery. "This has gotta be the nicest natural setting in the Fire Nation. I don't see anything that would make a spirit mad around here."

"Hey," Zuko protested. "Not everything in the Fire Nation is all hell and brimstone. "

"Yeah," Sokka agreed, taking a deep breath that actually moved the flowers in front of him. "I think I'm kind of starting to see that."

"But I still don't get it," Aang continued thinking. "We've been looking all day and haven't found anything. If there's nothing making the spirits mad, then why do people keep disappearing?"

"Maybe we have to wait for the full moon to find out?" Zuko offered.

"Or maybe," Toph considered, "the moon spirit just turned mean."

Sokka straightened suddenly, then spun to face Toph. "The moon spirit," he barked, spittle flying from his lips, "is a gentle loving lady! She rules the sky with compassion and… lunar goodness," he finished lamely, at a bit of a loss for words.

Toph blinked at Sokka, who she normally got on well with, and then turned her blind eyes towards Aang, who shrugged slightly at the still fuming Sokka. Zuko glanced between his friend's over the top reaction and the confused earthbender, but before the Sokka could say anything else, the traveler Toph had told them about appeared over the hill, and Aang darted off towards him with a polite greeting, Toph following hesitantly on his heals.

"Don't worry about it," Zuko told the boy, not wanting to approach the traveler, least he be recognized. "Toph didn't know any better."

"Yeah, well… I'm gonna find out what _is _causing all this mess. That's for sure." Having reached his conclusion, he went stomping off to help interrogate the passerby.

"Excuse me, sir!" Aang was asking. "Can you tell us anything about the spirit that's been stealing people?"

"No, I can't really…" The traveler seemed to consider his answer, then continued in a mysterious voice. "I can't, but... Only one man ever saw it and lived, and that's Old Man Ding."

Toph grabbed his shirt from the side in a manner that reminded everyone she was blind, as she was quite far from actually meeting the villager's gaze. "Where does Old Man Ding live?" she demanded as Sokka settled in behind her.

"Well, on the edge of town, of course," the traveler supplied. "On the east side. His will be the house with the broken window and busted down door frame. His wife's been hollering about it all across town for weeks. Haven't you all heard?"

"No," Sokka denied. "We're not… from around here. We're just passing through."

"Where you from then?" the man asked, a bit suspicious despite his warm character.

"The colonies," Aang supplied, so naturally that Zuko had no doubt they'd done this before.

"Really..." The man's tone was intrigued, and he started looking at them closer. "I never actually met someone from the colonies. Are there earthbenders there?"

"Some." Sokka eyed the man scrutinizing him cautiously. "Hey, thanks for you help, but, uh… we gotta get going. Only about an hour of daylight left. How far is it to Old Man Ding's?"

"About a thirty minute walk," the man estimated. "You'd better make it fast though. It gets dark quick around here, and the moon will be out soon." He glanced around. "Speaking of which, I better high tail it home myself! See you all later, colonials!"

Aang waved after the departing man. "So," Zuko asked, joining them. "What's the plan?"

"I think it's time we paid a visit to this Ding fellow," Sokka suggested, rubbing his chin.

* * *

The trip that the traveler claimed should have taken a half hour wound up leaving them outside well after the sun had set because they couldn't walk straight through the village with Zuko, but instead had to circle around it, carefully avoiding people thanks to Toph's extraordinary senses. Each time she noticed someone near by, the group was easily able to stay out of eyesight. It made slower going than they would have liked, but by the time the sun had set they were well clear of the forest. There was another benefit, at least as Zuko saw it, to arriving late. Most of the villagers had already retired, keeping their kids inside since it was a full moon, so the village was nearly empty of people on the street, making his chances of being recognized much slimmer. And he used the time to tell his companions about the strange visitors he'd had back at Hama's inn.

"So, they lost their son in the woods?" Aang asked when Zuko finished. "That's... horrible... What did Hama say?"

"I didn't tell her yet," Zuko answered. "Finding out she was a waterbender kind of distracted from it, and this morning she and Katara were gone before I saw either of them."

"Eh, I don't get it," Sokka pondered. "I thought this 'spirit' only attacked during full moons. It can't be the same thing, then. Didn't that family say they lost their son last night?"

"It wasn't a full moon last night?" Aang seemed surprised.

"Haven't you been listening, Twinkletoes?" Toph demanded. "The full moon is tonight!"

"A moon isn't full for just one night, is it?"

"Ah... how would I know?" Toph waved her hand in front her eyes. "I'm just telling you what everyone else has been saying."

"Yeah, Aang," Sokka added. "Don't be stupid."

"No, wait," Zuko interrupted, thinking the Avatar might be on to something. "Why did you think the moon was full last night?"

"Why did you think it wasn't?" Aang asked back.

"Ah," Sokka mocked in a stupid voice, "because I looked at it." Zuko shot his friend an angry glare. "What? I'm not allowed to look at the moon now? Jeez! I'm telling you, it still had a sliver missing! It wasn't _quite _full."

Aang shrugged. "Felt full to me."

"That." Zuko snatched what it was that was nagging at him. "That right there. What do you mean, 'felt full'? Don't you have to look at the moon to see if it's full? You can't _feel _it. Right?"

"I can," Aang replied as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"What?" Sokka scoffed. "You can't feel the moon!"

"Yes, you can," Aang insisted.

"What does the moon feel like?" Toph asked quickly.

"Yes," Zuko agreed. "Explain it."

The Avatar blinked at all his friend's interest. "I dunno... it's just like, when the moon's out and full, I feel like waterbending. Just like when the sun is really bright, I want to firebend."

"Oh, Aang." Sokka lay a mentoring arm across the boy's shoulder's. "We all know bending can be effected by the elements, like the sun or the moon. But that only works for big things, like an eclipse, or that big upcoming comet of doom."

"No," Zuko disagreed. "That's not true, Sokka. I can always feel it when the sun rises. Well, not always, but usually. It's just kind of... a sense that it's there, and I feel stronger. Is it like that?"

"Yeah!" Aang exclaimed, happy that someone else understood what he was saying. "Exactly! Since I started firebending, I've noticed that I always sense when the sun is rising too. I just, kind of... wake up then, and feel like firebending. When did you notice it, Zuko?"

"When I was fighting against Katara at the North Pole." Zuko rubbed his jaw. "No, maybe that's not true. Maybe I've always known about it. It just never reall occured to me." _You rise with the moon, _his own voice echoed back to him, _I rise with the sun..._

"So," Toph surmised, ticking things off on her fingers, "you feel like waterbending when the moon is out, and firebending when the sun is. When do you feel like earthbending?" Her voice was excited.

"I dunno." Aang shrugged. "Never?"

Toph grunted angrily and crossed her arms. "Airbenders..." It sounded almost like a curse.

"Why does all this matter?" Sokka asked suddenly.

Zuko blinked at him. "A hunch?" he offered lamely.

"I don't really see how waterbending has to do with this full moon monster," Aang put in. "All I was saying was that for waterbenders, I don't think it's so much the _actual _day that the moon is full that matters, but more like... the fact that it is there, you know? And even if it hasn't been _full _these last few nights, it's been so big and bright that I guess it kind of feels like a full moon. That's all that matters, right?"

"I don't know, Aang," Sokka countered. "What you feel aside, this is this, and that is that. We're working on the mystery of the moon monster, not the bending powers."

"But it could mean that missing kid is related to the full moon mystery," the Avatar insisted, thinking along the same lines as Zuko.

"Or it could mean nothing," Sokka denied. "The kid could have already found his way back home for all we know, or have run away from his parents all on his own. Whatever 'feelings' you have about the full moon don't necessarily link the two cases. What we need is solid evidence to go on, not creepy moon vibes."

"I guess," Aang agreed somewhat dismally.

"And speaking of evidence, look!" Sokka shouted, suddenly distracted. "That house over there has a broken door. You think that's it?" He pointed enthusiastically at a building.

"No," Toph denied. "There's no one inside. Ding would be at his house at this hour, right?"

"Do you think Katara's home yet?" Aang worried as Toph's comment sank home. "It's getting late."

"Yeah, she's probably fine," Sokka waved him down. "She's with Hama – what could happen?" Zuko felt very skeptical of that remark. "She's probably already home and most likely livid we're all out so late. 'I've been home all this time worrying about you!'" he mimicked her voice. "'Didn't even tell me where you were going…' 'I was worried sick, I was!' and blah blah blah. Hey, what about that house?"

"Actually," Zuko noted, "I think that is it. Isn't that an old man right out there?"

"Yeah," Aang agreed. "And he's fixing his door!" The Avatar bounded happily down the street, moving too quickly and lightly to be doing anything other than airbending. "Old Man Ding?" he asked, approaching the man with a hammer.

"Ah!" the man cried as he divided his attention between Aang and his nail and proceeded to hammer his own thumb. Zuko winced in sympathy, having done the same thing himself before, and he noticed Sokka did the same. "Ding flame it!" the man cursed curiously. Then he turned his attention to the newcomers. "What?" he grumbled. "Cain't you see I'm busy? Got a full moon risin'; and why does everyone call me that? I'm not that old." He bent to pick up the board on the ground and gave a few tremendous grunts without budging it.

"I think I know why he's called Old Man Ding..." Sokka whispered to no one in particular.

"Well," the old man amended. "I'm young at heart."

Ever the helpful one, Aang hurried to help, grabbing the other end of the wood slat and helping hold it so Old Man Ding Sokka could nail it into place. "Don't worry," Aang assured him. "Age is in the eye of the beholder."

Old Man Ding raised an eyebrow at the Avatar, as if wondering for a moment if he was being mocked. But when Sokka started nailing the beam into place and Zuko hefted the second one, he seemed to decide it was all right. "I'm not ready ter get snapped up by some moon monster yet at least."

"We wanted to ask you about that!" Sokka exclaimed, excited the conversation had turned so easily to what he wanted to know.

"Did you get a good look at the spirit that took you?" Aang questioned.

"Didn't see no spirit," the man denied. "Just felt some'in come over me, like I was possessed." The man walked away from the doorframe once his side was nailed so Zuko could press his board against the door while Sokka continued nailing. From the way Old Man Ding slipped so naturally into the story, they could tell he'd told it more than once. "It forced me ta start walkin' toward the mountain," he explained, pointing up at the mountain they had spent the night on when they had first met Hama. "I tried ta fight it," the old man continued, raising his fists in example, "but I couldn't control my own limbs! It just about had me into a cave up there," he added, moving all stiff like as if he was possessed again, "and I looked up at the moon, fer what I thought would be my laaast glimpse a' light."

Sokka's kneed clattered together as he gripped the hammer in white fists, and Toph smashed him with a fist. "Shh!" Aang hissed, listening intently to the story.

"But then," Ding retold dramatically, "the sun started ta rise, and I got controlla myself again! I just hightailed it away from that mountain as quick as I could."

"So, you're saying you were possessed?" Zuko asked. "Did you see anyone around? A spirit, maybe, or a person?"

The man squinted at Zuko. "Don't I know ya, boy?" he asked suspiciously, and Zuko leaned quickly away, turning his face to hide his scar from the old, suspicious eyes.

But he was saved by Sokka's belligerent approach. "Oh! A bright light!" the warrior suggested loudly, prodding Ding in the chest. "Did you see a bright light? Or a strange animal that breaths bright light!" They all looked at him. "What? I'm just saying. It's more likely than the moon anyway…"

"Ain't y'all got ears?" the old man repeated himself, so flustered that he seemed to have forgotten his scrutiny of Zuko. "I told ya, I didn't see anyone. Nobody. Nothing. I was all alone, and I couldn't do nothin' but walk towards that mountain. Scariest thing that ever happened ta me."

"What, walking?" Toph asked.

"No! Loosing control a myself like that. It was like… horrible, that's what it was. Like a dark force was in charge a me, and I couldn't fight back at all."

"I don't know," Aang contemplated. "I never heard of a spirit like that…"

"Why would a spirit want to take people to a mountain?" Sokka wondered.

But suddenly, something seemed to click in Toph's mind. "Oh no!" Aang and Sokka both jumped about a foot at her exclamation, and Zuko was just glad Aang didn't go higher. "I _did _hear people screaming under the mountain! The missing villagers must still be there."

They all turned to look up at the mountainside. It had seemed so peaceful earlier that day, but now it appeared much more… malevolent. As if it hid things in the darkness that the day didn't know about. The wind whistled through it in a lonely fashion, sounding almost like it could be the screams of the villagers. "Are… you sure?" Zuko asked.

"Yeah," Toph confirmed, her voice steady. "I'm positive."

"So… what does that mean?" Sokka asked.

"What do you think?" Aang demanded.

"We're going?" Sokka predicted. "Now?" He slumped over, his arms dangling almost to the ground. "Can't we at least wait until morning, when it's… you know… safe?"

"Nope," Aang declined. "It just wouldn't be the Avatar's style."

"It still sounds pretty risky," Zuko considered. "If it's a person, Toph can warn us, but I don't think she can sense a spirit approaching…"

"So you do believe in spirits!" Sokka accused him.

"Around him," Zuko explained, with a pointed glance at Aang. "I believe in all kinds of danger."

"Oh, can it you babies," Toph barked. "There are people up there, stuck under the mountain. If you could hear them screaming like I did, you'd know we don't have a minute to spare. Now, I'm going. Stay if you want." She turned and ran off into the forest.

"Sokka," Aang suggested, his voice trembling a bit, "maybe someone should find Katara and tell her. If you want to stay-"

But Sokka slid his sword from it's sheath with a determined look. "I'm not leaving Toph," he declared before following her.

Aang hesitated only a second before chasing after. "This is a bad idea," Zuko groaned, but he trotted after the rest of the group as Old Man Ding watched them go, completely flabbergasted.

* * *

Katara shivered as she moved through the forest, following Hama's bent back. After experimenting with the fire lilies, she and the old woman had returned to the inn. But no one had been there, not even Zuko. She was still worried by their absence now. Whether they had been right to distrust Hama or not, she knew her friends were on to something when they said that the town was dangerous. There was most certainly something strange going on, and, even if there wasn't, it was danger enough for them if someone recognized either Aang or Zuko.

"Are you sure we shouldn't go back?" Katara reiterated nervously. "I would just feel much better about this if I knew that my friends were-"

"Your friends?" Hama's voice echoed back. "Your brother, perhaps you should be worried for, but can you honestly tell me that firebender is your friend?"

"How did you know he was a firebender?" Katara asked.

Shadow fell over Hama's face. "Oh please. I would know a firebender if I were blind; I've seen his kind too many times before. Killers. Destroyers. Firebenders. Use whatever term you want, they're all the same."

"No," Katara denied. "Zuko's not like that. He's my friend."

"So is that the name of that monster? Child, they are _all_ like that," Hama laughed. "Born to a world of hate and war – how could they be anything else? Can you truly tell me that this friend of yours is any different? Or does he hide his true vicious nature from you that well..."

Katara forced herself to stop remembering the frightened feeling she sometimes got when the prince looked at her. There was something in Hama's tone that made her realize this was about something much more than Zuko. "What did they do to you in that prison?" she asked, her voice trembling as she recalled the atrocities she herself had witness in Fire Nation prisons like the Boiling Rock.

But Hama ignored her question, turning instead to soak in the light of the moon. She lifted her arms towards its glow and seemed to straighten. "This discussion can wait," she declared. "Now is the time, the only moment in which I can teach you this form. Here, in the light of the full moon, we have the once in a lifetime opportunity to share our knowledge, the knowledge that is ours by right. Are you going to learn it, Katara? Or have I wasted my time with you."

Katara shook her head. "No. No, Hama. I'm sorry. I do want to learn… whatever I can."

"Good," Hama agreed, her tone soft again momentarily. "Can you feel it, Katara? Can you feel the power the full moon brings? For generations it has blessed waterbenders with it's glow, allowing us to do incredible things." Katara stared. Hama's fingers flexed as the veins in her arm protruded from her skin. She hardly seemed feeble any longer, but looked as if the moonlight was somehow becoming pure power to her. "I've never felt more alive."

Katara shivered slightly, rubbing her arm. "I feel stronger in a full moon too," she admitted, though she had to say she wasn't effected in the same way Hama was. "I've even met the spirit of the moon."

"Katara." The big blue eyes snapped back to the narrow old ones. "You wanted to know what they did to me in prison." It wasn't a question, Katara knew, but suddenly she feared the answer. "It is not a story for those weak of heart. You see, what I'm about to show you I discovered in that wretched Fire Nation prison.

"My fellow waterbenders and I were kept locked up in tiny, barred prison cells, like animals." Katara was already envisioning the cages she'd seen in the lower levels of the Boiling Rock again. The images were still so vivid in her mind that Hama's story immediately pulled them to the forefront of her imagination. "The guards were always careful to keep any water away from us. They piped in dry air and had us suspended away from the ground. Before giving us any water, they would bind our hands and feet so we couldn't bend. Any sign of trouble was met with cruel retribution."

"Why are you telling me this?" Katara asked, her voice trembling as she imagined that for her friends and family – as she remembered it happening to Zuko.

"Because it is essential that you understand exactly what happened there, and precisely why no one else but me escaped," Hama justified. "The prison was horrible, more so that I can simply describe to you. I was debased, humiliated, abused and chained. Left to rot in my own filth and death. It claimed those around me every day, and I watched my friends and family fade and die. And yet, through all this horror, each month I felt the full moon enriching me with its energy, and I knew there had to be something I could do to escape.

"It was then that I realized that where there is life, there is water. The rats that scurried across the floor of my cage were nothing more than skins filled with liquid, and so I passed years developing the skill that would lead to my escape."

A wicked smile crossed over Hama's lips as they formed the next words, and Katara knew immediately that she should never have come out that night.

* * *

Zuko easily caught up to the rest of the group, using his long legs to out stride the younger children. Toph had stopped momentarily to press a hand to the earthen floor while Sokka and the others reached her. "I can hear them," she reported. "They're this way!"

Sokka and Aang charged after the girl immediately, and Zuko did the same, if a bit more reluctantly. He kept his eyes peeled as they ran. Whatever was in this forest, he was sure it wouldn't differentiate between them and the villagers. They had to be ready for anything.

Just when Zuko was starting to feel his chest tighten from the extended uphill sprint, Toph stopped, turning to her left abruptly. "This is the place," she reported, and the prince noticed a small opening in the cliff face.

"A cave!" Aang exclaimed, seeing it himself. "The missing villagers are down there?"

"I think so," Sokka said, swallowing hard as he approached the entrance to the cave. "Listen."

When Zuko and the Avatar reached the mouth of the cave, they could hear it too. Voices. Distant, and weak, but crying none the less. They echoed eerily out of the mouth of the cave, and cold stale air greeted them from its mouth. "Do you hear that?" Aang whispered.

"Yeah," Zuko agreed. "You were right, Toph. It's them."

"Well, of course I was right," the girl shot back, as if there had never been any doubt.

"What's that smell?" Aang asked.

"Probably the air's gone stale," Sokka suggested, sniffing at it. "Not much ventilation in a cave…"

Zuko peered into the darkness. "We'll need a light," he realized, and began to open his fist to create a flame.

"No, STOP!" Aang shouted, diving across the cave opening and closing his hand around Zuko's forcefully.

"What did you do that for?" Zuko demanded as his flame died without a spark.

"_Don't _firebend," Aang commanded, and Zuko swallowed. The powerful tone was that of the Avatar, and he was serious. "Sokka, think. I pretty sure we've smelled this before."

"Well, if you know what it is, why don't you say so?" Sokka wondered.

"Because," Aang explained. "I need to know if I'm right."

Sokka shrugged and smelled the air again. "It smells like… the balloons from the air temple." Aang nodded, and suddenly Sokka snapped his fingers. "It's natural gas! It must be leaking up from somewhere inside the mountain!"

"It's what?" Zuko asked.

"Natural gas," Sokka repeated. "It's lighter than air and so it rises. There are lots of kinds, even one that was completely odorless, but this smells like the one used to power the balloons. It's perfect since it drifts upward into the balloon, and because it's… totally flammable…"

Aang nodded his head. "That's what I thought. And it would explain why no one has firebended their way out, if they are trapped down there." More of the screams drifted up the tunnel to them.

"Okay," Zuko agreed. "No firebending. So, what do we do?"

"Go after them of course!" Toph huffed. "What's wrong with you people?"

"But Toph," Sokka protested. "I can't see anything down there."

She shook her head. "That's why you have me." The tiny girl grabbed Sokka's hand and jumped down the steep part of the entrance into the cave. "Let's go!"

The scrawny warrior was dragged behind, and Aang jumped after her, reaching out so he could grab her other hand. Worried about being left behind, Zuko rushed after them, just managing to catch a hold of the back of Toph's shoulder before all the light faded. As the three blind boys stumbled awkwardly after their truly blind friend, Zuko couldn't help but wonder how they would ever get back out without her.

"Zuko," Toph said suddenly, and the prince started at the abrupt words that penetrated what had been silence. "You might want to walk behind Sokka."

"What?" he asked. "Why?" Then he left out a pained grunt as a large bit of rock that Toph had apparently walked right under slammed into his head. "Ah! Ow."

"That's why," Toph explained.

Sokka stifled a laugh as Zuko dropped back behind him, grabbing onto his sword belt near the top of his left shoulder. Suddenly the temperature changed, dropping a few degrees colder, and Aang shivered. "What's that?" he asked.

"Can't you tell, Twinkletoes?" Toph asked, the direction her voice was coming from implying that she'd looked towards him. "Or did I spend all that time teaching you to see with the earth for nothing."

Aang took a deep breath through the darkness, his words seeming to float out of the blackness somewhere to Zuko's right. "I think it's… another tunnel, leading off to our left."

"Atta boy," Toph congratulated him.

Ahead of him, Zuko could hear the sound of Sokka sniffing the air. "I think the gas is clearing up. Do you guys still smell it?"

After a moment where it could be assumed they were all testing the air, Aang answered. "I don't smell it at all any more. Do you think it's odorless now?"

"No," Sokka denied. "It doesn't work like that. It's either odorless, or you can smell it. It can't change."

"Then what?" Toph demanded.

"I think," Sokka suggested, "that it was coming from that cave we just passed, the one that runs off in the other direction."

"So we're clear now that we're past it?" Aang asked. "All the rest of the gas is going up towards the mouth of the cave?"

"I can't think of any other answer," Sokka agreed.

"Only one way to find out," Zuko suggested, and before Aang could stop him in the dark, he let go of Sokka and opened his fist.

The entire group let out a collective sigh as the small flame danced in his hand without exploding in their faces. "You should be more careful," Aang chastised, turning and blowing a huge gust of wind up the way they had come. "Hopefully that will blow most of the gas out of the cave."

Zuko bit his tongue. Wasn't _he _the one who should be saying that? Prisoners who had been alive since the last full moon could have waited until the morning to be rescued. Coming down into a strange place, in the dark, without a light, when they knew there was a monster on the loose was far more than careless in his book. But this was Aang they were talking about, and from the minute the boy had heard those screams, Zuko had known there'd be no turning back.

As if reading his mind, Toph's blind eyes passed over his, and she spoke in a determined voice. "Let's go."

The four would-be-rescuers plunged deeper into the cave until Zuko began to realize that the light from his flame wasn't the only one. Ahead of them, a pale glow flickered, and as they grew closer, they realized it was torchlight. They rounded the corner, and the group slid to a stop. A large metal door was blocking their way, and on each side of it were lit torches, dancing in their holders on the wall. "Someone has been here," Sokka declared, looking at them. "Recently."

Aang nodded as he removed a torch, and passed it to Sokka. As soon as the airbender had the second light free, Toph cracked her knuckles in front of her and then turned to face the huge metal door. "Stand back, boys," she cautioned, moving up to the metal frame.

As Zuko watched curiously, she planted both her feet solidly in the ground, and then wrapped her knuckles hard against the center of the door in a punching motion. The metal bent around her fists and then shot backwards into the cave with an incredibly exaggerated force Zuko knew was beyond the girl's physical strength. As he glanced at the awkwardly bent door, he remembered the strange way the bunker entrance beneath the throne room had been bent, and smiled. "So that's what happened to Father's secret door."

"I have been practicing," Toph boasted.

"No time for that," Aang called, charging through the now open hall.

The cries had grown easily twice as loud now that the door was down, and Zuko was sure that Aang was beginning to feel the pressure of saving the poor people. Toph outpaced the two boys, and Sokka and Aang trailed her, holding their torches high. Zuko brought up the rear. Moment's later, the light of their fires fell across an open area at the end of the hall.

When they stepped through into that area, they found a truly horrible place.


	25. Chapter 25:Faces of the Dead

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: ah, trombe, i've been blonded! i mean, i always thought of myself as blonde, but i was like a light brown-dirty blonde). thanks to your lovely sister, i am now like... bright yellow blonde! wah!  
_

**Trombe: I can't even tell. And as for the reviewers, thanks for your constant support and eagerness to read the story. Makes it worthwhile to put out a chapter earlier then expected.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 25: Faces of the Dead**

* * *

There was a mild stench in the air. A smell of decay.

Everyone stopped as they realized what they were looking at. Prisoners were shackled to the cave walls, manacles dangling from the stone haphazardly. At least eleven people in varying conditions were visible on the walls, which curved away so the firelight didn't reach it. The worst part was, they weren't all soldiers, or old men, or people who might be prisoners of war. They were everyday villagers, young boys, women, old folks. The idea of it was frighteningly real. One man, who had been wailing, glanced up at the arrival of the newcomers. "We're saved!" he rasped into the bright light.

Aang seemed to be having troubles taking in the sight, and Sokka's jaw was clenched tight. Zuko couldn't see Toph's face as her back was to him, but she pushed up her sleeves with determination and started towards some of the nearest prisoners, pulling her bracelet off as she did so. Whatever his friends were thinking, Zuko knew his own face must have a very displeased expression as well. "I didn't know spirits made prisons like this," Aang whispered, following cautiously after Toph. "Who brought you here?"

"Aang," Zuko whispered. "I don't think this was spirits."

"We need to see to these people." Sokka had gotten a grip of himself and started moving off to their left, shepherding Aang along side him.

The man who had spoke first groaned and slid to the ground as Toph managed to loosen his shackles. Zuko realized she'd made a key from her bracelet again, the same way she had back at Hama's, and was using it to pick the locks on the prisoner's bindings. Then, another depressing thought struck him. "The boy." The prisoners glanced at him, their haggard faces cringing in the light of his flame. "Has anyone seen a boy come in? He went missing two days ago."

"Yes," a woman beside him called. "There's a boy, a child! She brought him here yesterday!"

"Where?" Zuko demanded.

"In... there..." The woman's voice trailed off as she eyed the darkness around the corner frightfully.

Cautiously, Zuko moved around further to their right, brightening the fire in his hands again so he could see around the bend. As he approached, he began to notice a very rank smell.

He rounded the corner and held up his make shift torch, then stopped dead. The reason for the stench was suddenly abundantly clear.

This room was just as full of shackles as the first one, but all of them were filled, not with living people, who cried out and begged to be saved, but with emaciated bodies, some which blinked and moaned, others that hung limp in their chains, and still others that were already rotting, or being eaten away at by cave creatures.

Zuko felt the contents of his stomach threaten violently to resurface.

And then he saw it, the face of the boy. The child was standing on a table in the back corner so that his hands could reach the shackles, and he was much more alive and healthy looking than the rest of the room, much fresher. But his eyes were lifeless. All around him were the dead, and the dying, and the boy's dirty face was streaked with tear stains, his body limp in his bindings, and his eyes not even seeming to register Zuko's presence. He simply stared straight ahead, the torchlight glinting harshly in his vacant eyes.

Zuko considered himself a strong person, used to the horrors of the world. But this...

"What's in there?" Zuko flinched before he realized the voice was Aang's. The young Avatar was following the prince, his light coming around the bend. Zuko immediately dropped his flame, letting it wink out of existence, and turned to stop Aang before he could enter the room, holding his arms out wide to halt the boy's approach. Whatever else Aang had been through in his young life, Zuko knew this was one memory he didn't want the Avatar to have. "Zuko?" he asked, stopping in front of his firebending teacher.

"Don't go in there," Zuko warned.

"Why?" Sokka asked. "What's wrong? Are there more prisoners?" Behind Zuko, one gave a feeble cough.

"Trust me, Aang," Zuko cautioned. "You don't want to go in there."

Aang must have seen something in Zuko's eyes, because he swallowed and nodded, grabbing Sokka before the Water Tribe boy could protest. Across the front room, Zuko could see Toph's eyes. He could block Aang from seeing into that room, but somehow he knew Toph already had. Her blind gaze was heavy. "Come on," Aang told Sokka. "Don't we have a mystery to solve?"

"Zuko!" Toph called, tossing something across the dimly lit hall. "Here." He snagged it out of the air and glanced down. It was the key she had fashioned from her bracelet. "Can you handle that?"

"Is it even going to work on all of them?" he asked, turning to face the darkness behind him again.

"Hey they're not really complicated locks. It should work on all of them."

Even ready for it, he felt his hand tremble as he held the key too tightly in his hand. The light from his newly lit flame spread across the room, and he took a deep, putrid breath before beginning. The first task to freeing these people would be determining who was still alive. As he released each handcuff and checked the limp prisoner's pulses for life, he tried to focus on what Sokka and Aang were saying in the other room, rather than the sickening task before him.

"So tell us who did this to you," Sokka was prompting. "And you better not say it was the moon spirit!"

"It was no spirit," a woman denied.

"It was a witch!" the first man declared.

"A witch?" Sokka demanded. "What do you mean?"

"She seems like a normal old woman," the voice of the lady who had directed him to the back room explained. The clanking of chains implied Toph was freeing her with metal bending. "But she controls people. Like a dark… puppet master."

The word hung threateningly in the air for a moment before it clicked solidly in all of their minds. "Hama," Sokka growled.

"Yes!" a new man's voice called weakly. "The inn keeper!"

"I knew there was something creepy about her!" Sokka condemned.

Zuko's mind reeled. He had suspected the old woman too, but… To think, the woman who had fed them, who had shared their table, had done this? He started to feel sick again, suppressing his boiling rage simultaneously.

But then, Aang said something that completely sobered him. "Katara!"

"Ah!" Sokka wailed. "She's supposed to be with Hama right now!"

The chill that came over the prince had nothing to do with the cave around him. He dropped the corpse he was checking and stumbled towards the turn. As he did, his toe caught on a rock, hidden in the shadows, and he grunted as he hit the ground. He glanced up towards the bend. Around it he could hear Aang's voice. "We have to stop Hama!"

"Go!" Toph insisted quickly as the prince stumbled to his feet. "Zuko and I can get these people out of here. We'll use earthbending to get back, and you two go!"

"Forget that," Aang denied, and Zuko heard fire flare around the Avatar. "I'm gonna blow all that gas back up out of this cave. We're running, Sokka. Let's go!"

Zuko bumped into the far wall as he came around the curve, but Aang and Sokka's torches were already fading back up the cave. His eyes narrowing, he made to give chase. But before he had taken more than a few steps, a small, strong hand closed on his wrist, stopping him. "Where are you going?" Toph's voice demanded.

"Katara needs help!" Zuko roared, wondering why she didn't understand.

"So do these people!" Toph pointed out with equal fever, glaring into the prince's eyes. "Aang's looking after her," she stated in a book-no-nonsense tone. "Now I need your help here."

Zuko's chest heaved, but the worst part was that he knew she was right. Hadn't he been the one just moments ago who tried to stop Aang and the rest from entering the back room? Besides, if she was in trouble, it was Aang Katara wanted. The realization came like a blow from a dull blade.

He couldn't go to her.

Never the one to back away from a fight, Toph was still staring him down, but she seemed to sense that he had broken, and she released his hand. "I want a piece of that woman too," she admitted in a dangerous tone. "So let's take care of these people as quickly as possible." She glanced around the room. "Is anyone in fit enough condition to make it back to the village? We're going to need help."

"I'll go," the vociferous woman spoke up. "But my husband, he has a hurt leg."

Zuko sucked up the war he was loosing inside himself and turned back to the woman, trying to sound more reassuring than he felt. "We'll take care of him," he promised.

"This room is all unshackled," Toph declared. "Can you finish the back room while I walk her out?"

Zuko nodded, and the earthbender grabbed the volunteer woman's hand, pulling her out the door at a quick pace. The prince turned back to the cave, now alone with the prisoners. "Anyone healthy enough to walk, come and help me in the back room. There are people there who need help."

The prisoners nodded, the more bedraggled of them moving aside so the stronger ones could help. Zuko passed some of the weaker prisoner he'd loosed to the three who'd offered assistance, then began releasing the people who were still lucky to be able to draw breath. Every starving face looked like Katara's, and worry for her gnawed at the pit of his stomach worse even than the smell of the dead. Only when he was on the final living man did he realize he was saving the boy for last, as if he was afraid that when he approached, he would find the little boy as dead as the rotting corpses he was trying to ignore.

"My wife," the last man groaned as Zuko released him. "Help her."

The prince spared a glance to the woman chained beside him. "She'd dead, old man," he declared. "Let's get you out of here."

"No!" the gray haired man refused, pushing himself to his knees on shaking limbs. "She's still alive. She was just talking to me moments ago!"

Zuko eyed the pasty body he was indicating with doubt. No breath stirred in her chest. "She's not breathing."

"Check again," the man insisted, grabbing Zuko's wrist. The prince turned down on him, opening his mouth with a pained expression. "Check her again!"

Deciding it was easier to do as the desperate man wished then spend time arguing with him, Zuko moved back over to the wife. _How would I feel if this was Katara hanging here? _Then another thought hit him. _Is this what Mai looks like right now? Back in the Boiling Rock?_

Gritting his teeth, he suddenly felt his heart go out to the prisoner, and he reached out to touch the woman. He almost jumped back in shock when she gave a trembling breath and coughed, before relapsing again into an almost lifeless state. "You see?" the man cried. "You see! She's still alive… My Maiko."

The similarity of their names seemed to break Zuko's trance. _This isn't Mai, _he told himself. _Get a grip on yourself Zuko, and this isn't Katara. Katara is safe… with Aang._

With a sour sense of purpose, he grabbed the woman's cuffs and fitted the key into them, jamming it into the lock until he could force it to turn. It clicked, and he lifted the woman up, passing her gently out to a man in the front room as another prisoner helped the old man.

There was only one living person left, and Zuko hoped so badly that child was still alive. He took a deep breath, and then went straight for the boy. As he stepped to the back of the room, the dead bodies curving around the walls seemed to press in on him, and he lifted a hand quickly to the boy's mouth. A huge sigh escaped him as he felt breath on the back of his hand. _Of course he's alive, _Zuko reassured himself. _He was just captured less than two days ago..._ But it was still a heavy relief. Working Toph's key into the manacles, he felt the terrible eeriness of the bodies around him goading him to move faster. As he struggled to loose the lock, the child's eyes suddenly refocused, and almost immediately he began to scream.

"Stop," Zuko told him. "Stop yelling! I'm here to save you now, so stop screaming."

But the boy continued to shout hysterically, calling for his parents, fresh tears rolling down his face. Zuko groaned and glanced behind him. All three of the people helping him had left, dragging the living out of the room, and he was alone with the boy, and the dead. But at least no one was there to see him.

Tearing the metal bindings off the minute the lock clicked, he grabbed the child, perhaps harsher than needed, and buried the boy's face in his shirt. "Don't look," he told the weeping child. "Don't look at anything but me. Your father sent me to find you. You're safe now."

The boy hiccuped. "You know my dad?" he asked.

"I do," Zuko nodded. "He's worried about you, and wants you to come home with me." As he talked, he moved towards the exit, edging his way back out into the light. "Just hold on to me, and everything will be all right. I promise." The boy nodded as Zuko rounded the bend and let darkness fall on the room behind him, abandoning forever those he was too late to save.

Toph was just returning from the cave at a run out of the darkness. "Help should be arriving soon," she stated aloud, before turning to Zuko. "I took that lady all the way to the end of the tunnels, so she's headed back to town all ready. And it seems like that gust of air Aang sent out earlier took care of most of the gas in the cave too. I plugged up the other tunnel just in case."

He nodded, feeling a level head returning to him now that he was surrounded by the living, instead of corpses. "We should try and get these people at least out of the cave first, just in case. We wouldn't want someone from the village coming and causing an explosion. We at least know to smell for the gas."

"My thoughts exactly."

Zuko glanced around. There had been twelve people chained in the front room, four, maybe five, of which looked like they might be able to make it on their own. Minus the woman they had sent ahead, that left six invalids from the front room, and six more Zuko had pulled from the back, who were in absolutely no condition to walk, plus the boy. "Any ideas how?" he asked, surveying the group.

"I can carry… ten, tops." Zuko raised an eyebrow at her, but the blind girl couldn't see it. "That leaves seven."

"How many of you can walk?" Zuko asked, and the three who had been helping him raised his hands. "All right, you three, help those two," he directed, gesturing at two of the stronger looking prisoners. "Can you manage?"

"I think so," the old man who had spoken first decided as they paired off and formed into two shaky groups. "How far?"

"At least the mouth of the cave," Zuko replied, lighting and extra torch and handing it to the odd man out. "Be ready to put that out immediately if I tell you too." The man took it, and nodded solemnly.

"My wife," the sick man from the back room wheezed. "She's not well. You must help her."

"We know, old man," Toph insisted, freeing herself of his hands as she moved to the wall of the room. "Zuko, can you handle her?"

He nodded, and handed the boy to the torch barer as well. The child started to cry, but the man seemed to recognize him and spoke softly. Eventually, the boy calmed, releasing his death grip on Zuko's shirt, and the prince moved over to lift the frail older woman in his arms. He hoped she survived the trip, but was sure her husband was right. She had more of a chance being carried by him then whatever massive move Toph had planned for the rest of the invalids.

As if his thought had cued it, there was a huge rumble and some of the people cried out in surprise as a large slab of rock detached itself from the wall. "Look at that!" "The wall just came apart." "I think it's that girl!" "How did she do it?"

"What are you doing?" Zuko hissed at Toph through his teeth.

"Making a litter," she replied. "It's the only way to get everyone out."

But the less delirious people seemed to have caught on. "She's an earthbender!" the old man who's wife Zuko still held accused.

Echoes repeated him around the cave as people whispered to each other. "What's an earthbender doing here?" a woman demanded.

"Saving your hides," Toph growled, detaching a second slab. "I'm from the colonies, okay?"

"Why would you save us?" the man who'd been screaming for help called throatily. "We're your enemies! What more could you do to us?"

Zuko felt his teeth grind. "Enough!" he shouted, letting his firebending send flames dancing around the cave roof. The display might have been over the top, but they needed to be reminded that he was a firebender like them too. Plus, it felt kind of good to steam off right then... "What does it matter if she's an earthbender? The only way we ever would have found you was because she is. You should be bending over and thanking her for your lives! If you distrust her so much, then stay here and rot like the rest of your friends, for all I care. But I'm getting out of here, and I'm taking everyone I can with me. So if you want to live, get on the stone carriers."

The people stared at him for a moment, then hustled to do as he'd directed. "That was a foolish thing to do," he chided the earthbender. "What if Azula hears about this? A blind, earthbending girl? Saving people?"

"Then we'll just have to hope she doesn't," Toph stated.

"You really think that'll be enough?"

She shrugged. "What else could I do? Besides, you seemed to handle them well enough."

"They're Fire Nation," Zuko explained. "They just needed clear direction and a good dose of anti-prejudice."

"Well," Toph smiled. "I think you gave them that." She glanced at the litter. "That's all I can take. There's still gonna be one odd man out."

Zuko hefted the woman in his arms and surveyed the people on the stone carriers. One was the husband of the woman who'd run off to town. He looked in decent condition other than his leg, which was bent awkwardly and seemed to be bruising. Zuko walked over to him. "Do you think you can hold on if I carry you on my back?" he asked. "I have to hold this woman with my arms."

The man glanced around at the state of his fellow prisoners, and nodded. "I'll try."

As Zuko hefted the second prisoner onto his shoulders the man clung on, and he struggled to his feet. He didn't think he could have held them both if either one hadn't been so emaciated. "You ready?" he asked Toph, and she raised the carriers off the ground a few inches with a grunt. "You five?" he asked the walking prisoners, and they nodded, still eying the small girl awkwardly. "Let's go."

* * *

"Bloodbending."

The word hung in the air, cold, and dark as the night.

Katara didn't want Hama to continue. She didn't care for this technique, she knew that all ready. Her mind screamed for her to leave now, to just turn and run from the clearing, but the rational part of her could see no reason to, yet. All the woman had done was talk. Though somehow she knew that the minute that word had been uttered, it had become something so much more than talk.

"Controlling the water in another body," Hama explained, her voice rasping and dangerous. "Enforcing your own will over theirs. This was the technique that freed me from my cell.

"Once I had mastered the prison rats," she revealed. "I was ready for the men." Katara swallowed hard, trying to picture something she had never imagined before. Visualizing something so foregin as bloodbending seemed as difficult as discribing stars to Toph. "And during the next full moon… I walked free, for the first time in decades, my cell unlocked by the very guards assigned to keep me in." Though Katara could not fully envision it, Hama seemed to be revealing in the memory. Her hands dropped back to her sides as she half turned back towards Katara. "Once you perfect this technique, you can control anything, or any one."

"But… to reach inside someone and control them?" She shuddered. "I'd never want to do that."

"Come now," Hama coxed. "Has there never been a time, ever in your life, where you wished you could control someone else? Think of the possibilities! The power."

Katara realized she was doing a bad job of refusing. "I… I don't know if I want that kind of power."

But Hama seemed unwilling to take no for an answer. "The choice is not yours; the power exists! And it is your _duty _to use the gifts you've been given to win this war."

"No," she denied. "There must be another way."

"Katara, they tried to wipe us out, our entire culture. Your mother! Think of her, of what she must have suffered at the hands of the Fire Nation, before you refuse."

"I know," Katara whispered. "I think of her every day."

"Then you should understand what I'm talking about!" Katara was beginning to get the sense again that there was more to what Hama was telling her than was on the surface. "We are the last waterbenders of the Southern Tribe," the old woman continued, the note of insanity in her voice again. "We have to fight these people whenever we can, wherever they are, with any means necessary."

And suddenly the second meaning behind her words became clear. _Sokka's mystery! _"It's you," she realized. "You're the one making people disappear during the full moons! It all fits…"

Hama's jaw set angrily. "They threw me in prison to rot," she accused, "along with my brothers and sisters. They deserve the same!"

"No…" This was spinning out of Katara's control far too fast; she could hardly believe the angry old woman before her was the same kind, caring inn keeper who had taken them in and made them dinner.

"You must carry on my work. There are so many more who need to be punished! Think of all the good you could do! Katara, you must become a bloodbender!"

"I won't!" she declared firmly. "I won't use bloodbending, and I won't allow you to keep terrorizing this town!"

"A town of firebenders!" Hama cried.

"A town of people!" Katara shot back. "People just like anyone else, Hama! You've become what you hated most; you've become no better than those raiders! It's _you _who needs to be stopped!" Her finger flew up to point angrily at the other woman across the clearing.

A startled cry escaped from her lips as her hand jerked uncontrollably to her left first, and then swung back hard to her right, dragging her body violently after it. It twisted behind her and she spun, grabbing it with her left hand and struggling against the force manipulating it. But then the rest of her body fell pray to the bloodbender as well. "You should have learned the technique before you turned against me!" Hama reproached, forcing Katara's body to become as stiff as a board. "It's impossible to fight your way out of my grip. No one has even done it before! I control every muscle, every vein in your body."

Katara cried out as she was dragged back and forth across the clearing, snapping around like a puppet on loose strings. Then, just as suddenly, she stopped, and Hama began to move her hands downward in a commanding manner. Katara felt her body begin to bend submissively; felt Hama's will overpowering her own. Every fiber of her body was falling pray to the strange bending, and this last, domineering move was the most painful of them all. A battle of pure will power. And Katara was loosing.

"Stop!" she cried, as she lowered towards the ground. "Please…"

But Hama just laughed wickedly at the tears that rolled down Katara's face.

All fight left her, and the younger woman slumped to the ground, bowing in a humiliating fashion to the elder, as the laughter still cackled through the trees. But, even through her own defeat and the sense of overwhelming control, Katara realized she could still feel it. The moon.

Light from the silver orb shone down on her, and she could feel it's pull in her blood, stronger than Hama's, if she just wanted it.

Her hands balled angrily into fists. She meant the old woman no ill will, and pitied her beyond belief, but she would not allow this to continue. She would not be manipulated; she could not be controlled! And she would not allow Hama to do this to anyone else, ever again!

Tears dripped off her face, but as her fists closed, she focused not on the terror of Hama's power, but on the strength of the moon within her. Water gushed from the grass around her. She would use the old woman's techniques against her. Her gaze rose back up to Hama's as the inn keeper continued to hold her on the ground, humbling her utterly with the strength of bloodbending.

But now Katara could ignore it. The force of Hama will was nothing compared to the pull of the moon. The inn keeper bent against her, but Katara ignored the pull, enforcing her own command over her body, and rose to her feet, pulling the water she had gathered from the grass with her. "You're not the only one who draws power from the moon," she condemned. "My bending is more powerful than yours, Hama."

"That is impossible!" the woman roared. "No one has ever escaped that submissive hold!"

"Then you've never used it on another waterbender." Katara's tone was cold and powerful as she faced the older bender. Her eyes blazed. "Your technique is useless on me!"

Water leapt up around her, dancing at her command, her power doubled by the moon, and she cast it at the old woman. Hama caught the wave and redirected it, her hands twirling over her head, and the water shot back towards Katara, who pivoted, absorbing the force of it and whipping it around her.

But as she turned back to send it towards Hama again, she saw the woman had pulled water straight out of two more trees, causing them to explode, and now a triple blast twirled together in midair, aiming straight for the defending waterbender. But Katara already knew now that her will, her strength, was greater than Hama's, and as she watched the water approach, she felt no fear.

She took a breath, and then reached out, easily finding the exact center of the attack, and then smashed it back. The water hit her hand like a wall, and exploded in a huge arch away from her, rebounding on its master. Hama was left staring in awe at the pure strength of Katara's resolve.

But Katara didn't waste a heartbeat. While the older woman gaped, she leapt forward, bringing her arms together and smashing two more streams of water in at Hama from either side. The puppetmaster's body careened out of control, completely thrashed between the opposing streams of water, and she spun through the air before crashing into the ground.

Katara breathed heavily as the woman coughed and pushed up on her arms. "It's over, Hama," she proclaimed.

"Katara!"

Her eyes darted up behind the other bender to where she now saw Aang and Sokka moving out of the forest at a run. "We know what you've been doing Hama," Sokka declared, waving an arm accusingly.

"Give up," Aang added, taking a bending stance. "You're outnumbered."

"You solved it!" Katara started to call, glad of her brother's and Aang's arrival, but then something else distracted her.

Katara watched in horror as Hama's face, which had previously held the angry look of someone defeated, twisted again. The boys were behind her, so they didn't see the expression of insanity that came over the aged features. "No!" she shouted, pushing to her feet. "You've outnumbered yourselves."

"Don't!" Katara begged.

But it was too late. The boy's bodies went stiff, and she knew Hama was bloodbending again.


	26. Chapter 26:Under a Full Moon

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: zutara friends, i am so sorry, but at the end of this chapter you may be stuck holding your breaths until we publish the next one! don't kill us! you were the ones who wanted this so badly!  
_

**Trombe: Hey, suspense and drama is what makes a good story. Although...too much of that and it turns into a an afternoon soap. Yeck.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 26: Under a Full Moon**

* * *

Zuko dropped to a knee as he came down off a particularly large rock, and he struggled to push himself back upright under the added weight of two prisoners. "Are you alright?" the man on his back asked.

"Magnificent," Zuko answered, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Toph, how you holding up?"

The girl just grunted as she dug her feet into the earth further. They had just left the cave entrance and started back down the mountain towards the town. The two make-shift carriers still hovered a few inches off the ground, each of their five passengers (or the ones of them that were conscious at least) trembling slightly as they struggled not to slip off. The stone slabs were trying to slide down the hill, and the only thing keeping them from doing so was the invisible force the earthbender was exerting on them. Her feet skidded forward through the dirt as she continued her slow decent, the slabs suspended before her they progressed.

Suddenly there was the splintering sound of an explosion off to their right. The group jumped, and somehow the night seemed more ominous. "She's here," one of the five walking prisoners whispered. "Hama…"

But Zuko's heart leapt for another reason. _Katara…_

"Let's take a break," he suggested to Toph, laying the unconscious woman down on the giant stone litter.

Before Toph could protest, there were shouts below them, and lights bobbed through the trees as a group of villagers appeared, coming up the path. "Lin!" the man on Zuko's back called as his wife appeared at their head.

"You're safe," his wife cried, rushing to embrace her husband as Zuko set him down.

Toph's litters hit the ground with twin thuds, and she wiped her forehead in exhaustion before plopping down on rock for a well deserved break. No one seemed to be mentioning to the rest of the townsfolk that she was an earthbender.

All around people were greeting loved ones they thought long lost, scooping up injured, crying and thanking the rescuers. The man he had met the day before was hugging his boy, and his wife was weeping wildly. But Zuko was barely aware of them, even the ones that pulled on his sleeves. His eyes were scanning the forest in the direction the explosion had come from.

Moment's later his vigilance was rewarded, as the crisp, popping sound of another explosion echoed through the forest. Now he could hear people shouting as well, very distant. _They're not far... And it doesn't sound like things are going well._

His eyes turned for a moment to Toph, who nodded simply. "Go," she dismissed him. "I'll take care of this and follow in a minute."

Zuko was already running before she finished the sentence.

* * *

Hama lifted her hands, and the boys' bodies snapped up rigidly. Aang let out a startled cry, and Sokka gave a strangled shout as they were suddenly whisked across the ground, their feet dragging uselessly across the grass. They flew at Katara, a wild mass of flailing arms and legs, but Katara spun through them, drawing more water from the grass, and shooting it out at Hama.

But the old woman was prepared. Another tree exploded as the water within it formed a spinning wheel around her, effectively shielding her from Katara's new attack. There was an explosion of water in which the younger lost track of the older's movements. Then Sokka called a warning from behind her. "Katara, look out!" he brother's voice called as the distinctive sound of his meteorite sword being drawn filled the clearing. "It's like my brain has a mind of its own!" he cried as he began to swing haphazardly at her.

"Enough, Hama!" Katara pleaded.

But the old woman was in no mood to repent. She waved her arms wildly, her fingers stiff like a puppeteer's, and Sokka continued to dance to her tune. "Stop it, arm! Stop it!" he commanded uselessly as Katara was forced to defend herself, brushing him aside with a stream of water.

But suddenly Aang was there too, attempting to kick her from behind. "Katara!" he shouted, his voice higher than normal, and frightened. "This feels weird!"

Katara dodged his side kick, then smashed her water into him, knocking him heavily against a tree. As he hit it, and idea struck her, and she froze him to the trunk, covering his whole body with a wave of water that turned to ice. Aang grunted heavily as he stuck solidly against the rough bark. "I'm sorry, Aang," Katara apologized quickly.

"It's okay!" he called back immediately."Look out for Sokka!"

Katara ducked under another wild swing from the black sword, and drained another tree of its life water. She shot it out at her brother, using the same game plan she had on Aang, and blasted him back until he smacked into a tree. The water immediately froze to ice, pinning him, dangling a few inches off the ground. "Nice shot!" he called, shivering slightly.

"What now, Hama?" Katara called, holding each ice structure firm with her bending as Sokka's body twitched pointlessly against its binds.

Hama's mouth twisted sourly. It had come down to a test of will powers again, whether Katara could hold her ice, or whether Hama could bend her puppets out, and they both knew how it would end. She could see the desperation in Hama's eyes, but, unlike last time, she didn't see defeat.

Katara pressed harder against her ice, insuring it would hold. The woman continued to twitch her fingers, and Sokka continued to struggle. Aang's head twisted too, since his whole body was encased in ice, but as he made no other attempts to get out, Katara was forced to wonder if he was doing that himself, or if it was Hama. "Stay still!" she barked at the Avatar, and Aang immediately stopped moving.

_If she's not bloodbending him anymore, what's her left hand doing?_

"Katara, watch out!" Sokka's voice screamed, and she spun, too late, as an icicle formed behind her.

Everything happened too fast. The sharp, ice tip shot at her while she was still turning. Her reaction was not going to be fast enough.

Bracing herself for the pain to follow Katara did not expect a flurry of a shadow leaping up before her. Spinning and launching a kick, hot flames erupting furiously as accompanying the blow her rescuer delivered. The well timed counterattack shattered the ice projectile into tiny fragments that fell through the air, covering the night with sparkling shards.

The shadow landed effortlessly.

And never in her entire life was she more glad to see his familiar face.

"Zuko!"

* * *

The Fire Prince breathed a sigh of relief, he had just barely made it in time. In the old fairy tales his mother used to tell him the hero always arrived just in time, when he was desperately needed the most by the princess. While Zuko had never been one to call himself a hero he damned well felt like one at that very moment.

"Watch your back," he grinned at Katara, taking on his favored dragon stance.

"I-" Before the blue-eyed girl could respond she was cut off by their adversary.

"Wretched firebender!" Hama hissed at Zuko's recent rescue.

"It's over, hag. You're going to pay for what you've done."

Zuko's eyes glared. It was two against one. Numbers were to their advantage, and the face of her victems still fresh in his mind gave him all the motivation he needed. But the woman was a master waterbender, fighters renowned for their uncanny reflexes. He needed to tip the balance more towards their favor.

Roaring a battlecry, Zuko was pressed to launch a hard offensive. Leaping and lunging, flames engulfing wherever he struck. Hama countered every burst of fire with whips of water as they struggled, and slowly Zuko allowed himself pushed back. Zuko's flames illuminated the night mere seconds before being doused by the water of the old inn keeper.

"You think you can win against me, you demon!? I've spent a lifetime mastering the waterbending arts!" Hama sneered as her hands deftly created those infamous southern style water walls to protect herself from Zuko's firebending.

Her taunts landed on deaf ears as Zuko continued his assault. She was taking the bait.

"Katara!" he yelled out.

"Right!"

The young waterbender complied and joined the prince in a joint attack. He aimed low, she aimed high. Katara's water whips lashed out against Hama's own. This was the moment Zuko had been waiting for. He launched two sweeping kicks, sending two waves of fire simultaneously launching at the old woman who could only gasp in surprise as the flames caught her dead on. The intenses flame caused her to wince in pain as she lost her footing. Hama came tumbling down to the ground, her clothes cindered, her legs scorched.

Zuko knew victory was theirs. Who knew that the times he spent watching Katara practice her waterbending would lead to him finding out a fatal flaw in the art? The more he'd faught against Katara, the more he'd recognized it. A waterbender's attack and defense came solely from the movement of their arms. Masters of redirecting their opponents own attacks back against them, the waterbenders lacked vibrant dynamic offenses of their own, relying on their opponents to come to them. A waterbender never used their legs to bend the art. As such their feet were needed to be constantly rooted to the ground for their impenetrable defense. Break the root, break the bender. It was fundamental.

"Yeah, go Zuko!" he dimly heard Sokka shout from where he was pinned against a tree.

He hovered above her, left fist aimed and ready to deal the final blow if need be. Katara's presence solely reminding him what was at stake.

"You're done, Hama," Katara stated softly.

And she was right. It was time the old woman knew she was defeated. The Fire Prince was sure she was going to accept their term of surrender.

But then, her face twisted into a wicked smile that scremed the exact opposite of defeat. "...On the contrary..."

And suddenly all feeling left Zuko's arms and legs.

* * *

"Zuko?" Katara noticed the abrupt stiffness that came over the prince.

"Something's wrong," he grunted, moments before his right arm drew back and balled into a fist.

Katara gave a squeak and leapt out of the way as Zuko's fist slammed into the ground right where she had been moments before.

Suddenly Hama's horrid laughter was echoing through the clearing. "Oh, how wonderful! How lucky you are, to have such friends! For every one of them that comes running, my army is bolstered another man! What will you do, Katara? How will you stop me now?" She threw her head back and laughed again, her arms whipping in front of her as Aang's gave a startled cry.

"Ahh!" the Avatar called uncomfortably. "I don't like this, Katara!"

The ice around the Avatar's body gave a loud crack, and Katara made a rapid motion, pushing it solidly back into place. She would not have Hama hurting Aang or Sokka. She forced the thick ice coating the two to firm up again, but now it was Zuko's turn to shout out.

"What is this?" he demanded, grabbing at his disobedient wrist the same way Katara had, and grunting as it pulled a knife from the sheath at his belt.

"Who will you pick, Katara?" Hama's voice called. Katara's eyes had gone wide as Zuko procured the knife, and in her momentary distraction, Sokka's iced wrist broke free of it's confines, dropping the boy to the ground. The bloodbender was laughing madly as she piloted the warrior, sending him zooming across the clearing, pulled by his sword arm. "Who will you save?"

"Sorry, Katara!" Sokka apologized as his sword attempted to run her through again.

And as Katara dodged Sokka's attack, she was distinctly aware of Zuko's blade positioning itself by the prince's heart.

_Zuko and Sokka,_ she decided, releasing her hold on Aang's icy prison. _I'll stop Zuko and Sokka. Aang doesn't have any weapons. He can't hurt himself._

"Don't hurt your friends, Katara," Hama called. "And don't let them hurt each other!"

Sokka stopped attacking his sister, and her eyes widened as she realized Hama's plan. The meteorite blade was headed straight for where Aang was imprisoned in her icy barrier. If she didn't stop him, Sokka would surly bury his sword through the ice and into Aang. "Katara!" Sokka shouted.

"Katara!" Zuko's confused tone came again, as his own knife hovered inches from his heart.

"KATARA!" Aang cried as Sokka drove towards him.

"Three," Hama called. "Two…"

_What do I do? _Katara paniced. _She can only control two at once - she only has two hands. But even so, I can't stop both attacks. Who do I chose? What if I can't save all of them?_

_What do I do!?_

* * *

As Sokka bared his blade and headed straight for Aang, Zuko knew what Katara's decision was going to be. He didn't know how the old woman was doing this, but he knew it was her. And he knew that Katara would pick Aang and her brother, or wouldn't be able to pick at all.

He had to make the decision for her.

The old woman's mouth opened to pronounce the final word. "One-"

But before she could put voice to it, Zuko inhaled deeply, and blew a great stream of fire out of his mouth, onto his own arm.

He could feel his muscles spasm under the shock of the heat and the struggle for control, as he had expected them too, and the blade fell from his twitching fingers, clattering to the ground. Using the temporary break in control, and before she invested total influence over his body, Zuko kicked the blade as far from himself as he could. Only then did he let the pain of his arm register in his mind, and he cried out as he cradled to his chest. _It's not bad, _he told himself. _I've had much worse… _But it hurt none the less.

Behind him, he could hear Katara taking advantage of the situation. He was dimly aware that Hama had screeched angrily. "You wretched firebender!" she wailed, and, as he struggled to re-focus himself, he saw Sokka once again hurtling straight for the young avatar, this time Aang busting out of his icy bonds and flying back towards the warrior as well. "You bring this upon yourselves!" the woman screamed as she hurled the boys at one another.

But before either could harm the other, they both suddenly collapsed to a stop. The final few lasting bits of control that still held him pinned to the ground faded as the boys halted. Zuko blinked in surprise as Sokka dropped his sword and Aang stumbled into him, both lifting their hands in freedom and surprise.

"What..." Sokka wondered. "What happened?"

But Hama made a gasping sound as Katara positioned her hands before her in the same style the puppet master had earlier. Zuko watched in confusion as she lowered her hands, and Hama's body began twitching, until it was finally forced down onto its knees, in a submissive, bowing position. The old woman made one last struggle, pushing back up on her arms. "How could you?" she demanded of Katara. "How could you choose firebenders over your own family? Your own people?"

"This isn't about family," Katara stated, her voice as cold as Zuko had ever heard it – and he'd heard it plenty cold. "This is about doing what right." Then her eyes watered. "I'm sorry, Hama." Her voice trembled in the same it way it had in Ba Sing Se, when Zuko had betrayed her the first time, and suddenly he almost sorry for the old hag too.

"It doesn't matter," the old woman breathed, falling victim to Katara's bending. "What's done, is done." The words had a note of finality to them Zuko didn't think was for her own defeat, but they left a sour aftertaste in his own mind, too wickedly reminiscent of the advice Aang had given him the night before.

Sokka rushed over and grabbed Hama's arms, pinning her to the ground, and Katara shuddered as she dropped her own stance. "Are you all right?" Aang asked, his voice barely carrying to Zuko, and the prince saw Katara shudder from her kneeling position, and rest her head on the boy's chest.

Feeling his jaw clench so hard his teeth ground together, he turned angrily away from the sight. Every bone in is body wanted to rush to her, to _be _Aang right now. Hadn't _he _been the hero tonight? So why was it Aang she still wanted right now? He wanted to be the one holding her now, even if just to reassure himself she was truly all right.

But as he rolled over, clutching his burnt arm, he felt the exhaustion from the fight and the night's hike catching up to him. He could see all the horrid faces of the dying people he'd found, and the dead he'd had to abandon. And he realized why he wasn't there, beside Katara now; why Aang was. He _didn't _forgive Hama. Not in the slightest. He didn't care what horrors his people had done to her in the past. Certainly, they had been wrong, but if he'd had his choice, the monster laying on the ground before him would be dead right now. Dead, where she could never hurt another villager. Dead, where she could never escape. Dead, where she would never bother Katara again.

He moved his arm gently and sat up. Katara was pushing away from Aang, though she didn't look at all consoled, and Zuko felt a perverse pleasure run through him at the fact that the Avatar had failed to comfort her. But he ashamedly buried the thought as Katara approached him. "Let me see your arm," she commanded.

He held it out to her carefully, and moments later the cool, soothing feel of her healing started to wash over it. "Um… thank you," he started, feeling as if the silence made healing more awkward – especially when he was staring into her face like that.

"That was careless," she said suddenly. Her voice echoed out her concern and frustration. "Why would you burn your own arm?"

He blinked at her. This wasn't at all how he'd pictured their conversation going. "I did it so I would drop the knife," Zuko stated. "I did it so you wouldn't have to choose between me and… your friends…"

"I could have saved you all," she told him, her tone berating. "I did save you all."

Zuko's eyebrows drew. It wasn't him she was chastising; it was herself.

He started to open his mouth, to speak her name, to try and find something that would comfort her, or to at least understand what she was going through, but before he could even form the thought, he was cut off. "There they are!" Toph voice echoed through the tree, her small form appearing over the hill at the edge of the clearing.

Katara dropped Zuko's hand immediately, rising and turning away from him to face the villagers that had arrived with the blind girl. The lack of her touch was frustrating beyond belief.

"Don't worry!" Sokka called from where he was pinning the old woman down. "We got her!" Then he made angry motions at Aang, who quickly scrambled off in search of his hat.

Men from the village poured into the clearing, and one produced a set of handcuffs, obviously snatched from the prison walls of the very cave cell Hama had used to hold her prisoners. The villagers pulled her up when Sokka released her, and cuffed her hands in front of her. "You're going to be locked away forever," the man told her as Sokka rejoined his friends.

Hama ignored him. She was acting very docile for someone so horribly condemned. But the group realized why only as she was led away. "My work is done," she revealed, turning back to face them and delivering one final barb to Katara. "Congratulations, Katara. You're a bloodbender."

Katara covered her mouth as if she felt sick, then trembled and began crying. Hama laughed as she was led away, and Aang and Sokka rushed to comfort their friend. "Katara," Aang whispered. "It's all right. She can't hurt anyone any more."

But that didn't seem to be the right thing to say, as Katara pushed out of his arms and ignored Sokka's rebuffs, running off into the woods a ways. Aang and Sokka glanced after her. "What'd I say?" Aang asked, and Sokka shrugged. "Man," the Avatar groaned unhappily, kicking at a rock.

* * *

Zuko pushed through the trees, careful to keep his still somewhat-raw arm from bumping against bark or low hanging branches. He opened his mouth to call for her, but then decided against it, and moved on in silence instead, his golden eyes searching the forest for signs of her passing he would never have been able to see less than a week ago.

_She went this way, _he realized, catching sight of where her boot heal had pressed into soft earth and a tree branch had snapped, probably snagged on her clothes. _Or at least, someone did anyway._ But considering that there was likely no one else out there at that time of night, in the haunted forest, he decided to count on his odds that it was the girl he had just seen run off this direction.

_How long until they notice I'm gone? _Zuko wondered. While Sokka and Aang had been discussing – aka squabbling – over Katara's dramatic exit and Toph had been helping the villagers secure Hama, Zuko had slipped off after Katara, eager to get even a few minutes alone with her. _No, _he corrected his inner self forcefully. _I'm going after her because she's my friend, and she needs help._ But the anxious desire to see her he'd been battling with all night continued to gnaw at him regardless of his excuses.

The sound of running water caught his ear, and when he turned towards it, he saw her, huddled up on a rock near the edge of a stream. "Figures she'd head straight for the only bit of water in this entire rocky mountain," he muttered to himself before stepping out of the trees.

Katara didn't move. She didn't seem to have seen him yet. And now he was feeling awkward about how to interrupt her thoughts, or as to what to say once he had. She sniffed and wiped her hand across her face, and Zuko suddenly felt even more awkward. He came here because he wanted to see Katara, because he'd been jealous of the fact that Aang was the one comforting her, but now that he was here, he realized he didn't really know much about girls, especially crying ones. _Mai never cried, _he realized. _At least not to me. And she's the only real experience I have…_

Deciding maybe he'd been a little too over anxious following her out here, he turned to go back, but his boot crunched loudly on a pile of sticks as he turned, and Katara looked up. "Zuko?"

He pounded his forehead with his hands before turning back to her quickly, trying to cover it with a pleasant greeting. "Yes, it's me. I ah… thought I'd come after you, to… you know, talk."

"Oh," Katara stated, quickly scrubbing at her eyes again.

"Right," Zuko continued, maddeningly unable to stop. "Because that's what you people do when your friends are upset, right? Follow them and talk to them until they feel better? Or something…"

Katara snorted a little, and Zuko took that for as good a sign as possible, walking over and positioning himself on the rock to her left. She shifted a bit, still facing out towards the stream, and he crossed his arms where he leaned against his own rock, watching her. "So… are you all right?" he asked. "Everyone was kind of… worried."

"I'm fine," she said in a steely voice.

"Yeah," Zuko grumbled, his tone completely disbelieving. "Right."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded, spinning towards him.

"Look, I don't know what's wrong with you, but I know you're not 'fine'." She huffed and turned back to the stream.

"Sure," she snickered. "Way to state the obvious."

"Come on, Katara," he tried again. "I've said the exact same thing to Uncle hundreds of times, and I was never 'fine'. If… If I'm the problem, I'll go get Aang or someone," he offered, even though he almost choked over it.

"No," she said quickly. "No. Aang… wouldn't understand."

Feeling slightly victorious, he dropped back against the rock. "What wouldn't he understand?"

Her brow furrowed. "How I feel now!" she shouted, the water beneath her rippling turbulently. "What I feel like now that I've learned that horrible woman's technique, now that I've used it to control someone. It's… it's evil."

"Bloodbending, right?" Zuko asked, when she trailed out. "That's what she called it, at the end. Is that how she was controlling us?" Katara nodded, and Zuko took a moment to process it. He remembered how it felt to lose control of his body completely like that, and tried to imagine what it would feel like to use bending to control someone else. The thought was tantalizing, and unpleasant. It had the same, powerfully addicting feel to it that he'd felt for the few moment's he'd held lightening. Less dangerous, but darker. "Then," he concluded, "that's how you beat her. In the end."

"Yes," Katara confirmed, her voice sounding as if she was speaking about catching a disgusting disease. "I beat her with her own technique. I'm a bloodbender now too…"

Zuko took a deep breath as he watched the girl before him with a new sort of awe. With the full moon above them, he was vividly reminded of the first time he'd fought her since she trained with a waterbending master, when he'd tried to steal Aang from the North Pole. It had been a full moon then too, and she'd held her own against him, fighting with a skill level so much more advanced than he'd expected from her, he couldn't help but be impressed. She learned so quickly – a natural. Something that he both envied, and feared.

And now a bloodbender.

But Katara seemed much less than impressed with her new skill. Her eyes watered again, and she dropped her face into her hands. "Do you have any idea what that feels like?" she demanded. "To reach inside someone, to bend their will to yours? It's about more than just moving the blood in their body. It's about enforcing your mind over theirs! It's about crushing their spirit, their free will, and taking them over completely." Zuko decided saying that it could be useful was probably a bad idea. "I never want to do it again. I don't think I could live with myself if I had to…"

Her body trembled as she hiccuped, and he moved carefully to her side. His hands balled into fists for a second, and then he placed them awkwardly on her shoulders as he let her cry it out. "Katara," he told her, "you're better than that woman. Her technique may be evil, but that doesn't mean you have to be."

As the words left his mouth, he suddenly had an idea of what to say. "...When Sokka and I were hunting with your dad, he said something like that about Sokka's sword. That it's an instrument for killing, and it can't be treated any other way. But that doesn't make Sokka a bad person just for carrying it, does it?"

"I hate it!" she gulped, ignoring Zuko's rhetorical question. "I hate bloodbending!"

"Then don't use it!" That came out harsher than he'd meant it. She didn't seem consoled. "Oh, come on," Zuko groaned, running his hand through his hair as he wracked his brains. He thought advice from her father would have been just the thing. "It's not like you're the only one with a power you don't want," he reminded her. "You're still Katara. Just because Aang is the Avatar, does that mean he's any less himself, does it?"

"Being the Avatar is an honor," Katara protested, her tears trailing off. "It's not like… being part of something that aweful…"

"And being the prince of the Fire Nation is all glory and pomp, then?" Zuko demanded, a little annoyed that she could dismiss his own torments so. "You think I don't feel like a horrible person every time I hear stories about the terrible things my people have done? My family; the people that I'm responsible for. And no matter what I do, they're my people, Katara. My people, who destroyed all of the air temples; my people, who did those horrible things to Hama and your tribe… Would you rather live with that?"

As he finished, he realized Katara was looking up at him with eyes still wet from tears. He hadn't meant to go on a tirade. Spirits, he was so bad at this! He should have said something nicer, or at least not told her all the things he hated about himself. He was _trying _to make her _like _him, not remember why she'd hated him.

But, at least it seemed her tears had stopped. "I'm sorry," he said, quickly taking his hands off her shoulders. "That probably wasn't the right thing to say."

"No," she admitted. "Actually, it helped…"

Surprised, Zuko leaned back against his rock, watching her watch the water, wondering what she was thinking. She trailed her fingers down to where the reflection of the giant full moon danced across the tricking stream. "She wasn't all bad you know," Katara said, after a moment. "In her own, twisted way, I think she was just another victim of this stupid war."

Zuko bit his tongue. She was talking about Hama. He didn't think there would ever be a right time to tell Katara about the people in the cave, but he knew this definitely wasn't it.

"And, I can understand how easy it is to hate the Fire Nation."

Zuko raised an eyebrow. "Where are you going with this?" he asked.

"Just that… I'm sorry I treated you so cruelly before. I guess Hama is proof that there are horrible people on both our sides."

"Mmm."

"Zuko?" she asked, and now he knew she was definitely getting at something. "We're friends now, right?"

"I thought that's why you gave me this," he reminded her, drawing her betrothal necklace out of his pocket.

"Oh, well, yeah." She flushed, and it was pleasing to watch the tables turned on her. He was quite sure the embarrassed Katara was a sight better to look at then his own scarred face trying to blush. "It's just… Hama said something, before she completely lost it, about… you."

"Do I even want to know?"

"It's… bothering me."

He took a deep breath. "All right. What?"

"She asked how I could trust you," Katara revealed. "And I realized that I started trusting you… you know, back at the Boiling Rock." He nodded and she continued. "But I also remember you saying that I shouldn't just forgive you right away because I felt guilty, but that you wanted me to keep on you. Why would you say that?"

He shrugged. "I don't know… Maybe I just do better when I have someone to measure up to. And this is something I don't want to mess up." She quirked her head questioningly. "I guess, because I didn't want you to doubt your decision."

"I'm glad you had a reason besides more secrets. But… I think you were right," Katara admitted, and suddenly Zuko felt very cautious. "I really am glad that we're friends, but I also think there's still something you're not telling us." Zuko felt like a mule-deer in front of a bright light, too nervous to think straight. _How does she know? _The girl stood up and brushed her hands off on her pants, facing him with those deep blue eyes. "Zuko, why are you really here with us? What secret are you still keeping?"

He could tell by the wobble in her voice that she was afraid she'd be hurt again, afraid that she all ready knew the answer, but she had to ask anyway. He didn't know what to do. _The only secret I'm keeping is how I feel about her. If I tell her, who knows what'll happen, but… if I don't… _If he didn't, how would he ever convince her he wasn't going to betray them, again?

She watched him, clearly aware of the inner struggled going on behind his clenched jaw, even if she had no idea what its subject was. Zuko curled and uncurled his fists in a complete panic. _Maybe I can think up something else to tell her? No, that's just as good as lying – she'll know. _He remembered how hurt she had been after Ba Sing Se, and the hate she had felt for him afterward. He remembered how hard he'd worked to get past that, and how he had promised himself not to hurt her that way again. _I have to say something…_

_I have to tell her._

He opened his mouth, but he couldn't even find the words. _What do I say? The secret I'm keeping is that I have a giant crush on you – don't tell Aang? Or maybe I should start with, 'Now that Mai's in prison…'_

When nothing came out, Katara seemed to decide she had waited long enough. Her face fell, and she turned. "Never mind," she told him, rubbing her arm with a free hand. "It doesn't matter."

She turned to walk away, and everything inside him was screaming something different. _She's leaving! I blew it!_ He'd just spend the whole night terrified that he would lose her to a bloodbender without ever telling her how he felt, and now he was going to lose her because he couldn't. The look of disappointment in her eyes flashed before his vision, and before he could stop himself, he reached out and caught her wrist. "Katara, wait!" He still didn't know what to say, but he knew he couldn't lose her, not now that they had come this far.

As she turned, a strange desperation seemed to overtake him, a frightening culmination of the fear he'd felt this night and so many others, and all the times he'd kept silent when his heart was screaming inside him.

"Zuko, I-"

But she didn't finish. Before she had a chance, before he stumped himself trying to think of something to say, he strode forward and pressed his lips against hers.


	27. Chapter 27:Unexpected Confessions

* * *

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: yey, over 500 reviews! our fans totally rock! (even the ones that still think i'm a boy TT...TT) big props to trombe for keeping the story going while i've been so busy with cosplay for mikomicon! (we won first place for craftsmanship on our trinity blood outfits! hurray!)  
_

**Trombe: Yeah. the 500 mark. Woo-hoo, man I never thought this story would take such flight. Thanks a lot to the reviewers and the readers for keeping the spirit of Avatar alive. You guys gave me some of the inspiration to continue to do what I do even when I don't get the urge to write anymore. So lets not keep you in suspense. Here we go with the story.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 27: Unexpected Confessions**

* * *

When Zuko hadn't answered her question, Katara felt as if she had known he wouldn't from the minute she'd met him. There was always something with him. But she'd been hoping, since he'd been talking to her, opening up so much, that maybe, just maybe, he would tell her.

She hoped, because she had finally begun to believe in him. Because she wanted a reason to.

That was why she'd had to do it – she'd had to ask. The way he always stared at her; she knew he was hiding something, and secrets tended to hinder friendships.

She just wanted to be able to trust him. So she'd asked.

She had never expected this.

She started to tell him it didn't matter, to try and convince herself that she could just trust him for a while longer with knowing… whatever it was, even if she knew she was lying to think she could. But he didn't give her the chance.

In one fluid step he was there, his body inches from hers, and his lips smashed into hers, cutting off her words in a most unexpected manner. His hand pulled against her wrist, and her mind reeled as she realized what had happened. He was kissing her.

And it wasn't a kiss like one gave to a friend, or family member. It wasn't even the kind of kiss Aang had given her, hopeful and innocent. It was stronger, passionate, and desperate in a way she hadn't experienced. The kind of kiss she would have imagined getting from Jet.

But this wasn't Jet. And it wasn't Aang. This was Zuko.

Her back stiffened, and she pulled her head back, breaking the connection. His eyes lingered shut for a moment after she pushed away, as if he was afraid to open them again. When he did, he saw she was covering her mouth, and that her hand was trembling slightly.

She was more confused than she ever had been before. "What… Why did you- How was this even-"

"You wanted to know my secret," he protested, his voice nervous and angry. "What did you want me to say?"

"I don't know!" she wailed. "That you missed your home, or were still meeting secretly with Fire Nation friends, or… something! Something other than… that!"

"Well, I'm sorry," Zuko snapped back. "I'm not homesick or tricking you or anything else you might be suspicious of. I'm just… confused."

"But what about Mai?" she objected, snatching at straws.

"What about her?" he asked.

"What… what do you mean what about her? She's your girlfriend! She went to jail because of us!"

"Don't you think I know that?" he shouted. "I think about her every day, but it doesn't do anything to change the way I feel when I'm around you." Katara finally gave up, unable to think of anything else to say in the situation. Zuko's temper seemed to cool. "I'm sorry," he said suddenly. "I didn't mean for it to come out like-"

But Katara didn't want to hear how he had wanted it to come out. She didn't want to hear anything else he had to say right then. And so she did what any frightened and confused fourteen year old girl would do about her feelings. Run from them. As she turned and ran from the clearing for the second time that night, all she wanted was to somehow undo what he had done, to be his friend again. But she could have just as easily gone back and stopped herself from bloodbending as she could have fixed what just happened with Zuko.

_It was my fault too,_ she realized. _I'm the one who pushed him into telling me. I've spent all this time around him, I've even had an off thought or two about it myself, but I never dreamed he was feeling that strongly. _But she knew that the signs had been there, if only she had read them right. He took lashes for her, and the look he always gave her made sense now. It was desire.

And it was too much for her.

"Katara!"

She jumped as her brother grabbed her from around a tree. "We've been looking all over for you! Where's Zuko?"

"What?" she demanded. "Why would I know where Zuko is?"

"Ah," said Aang, appearing beside her brother. "Because we just heard you two arguing minutes ago?"

"You... heard that?" Katara squealed, trying to remember exactly what they had said.

"Well," Sokka denied, "not word for word. But we're been around both of you long enough to recognize a fight even from a distance. Now, come on, let's get out of here. I'm starting to worry about you, and we've got a long trip home in the morning."

As Katara let herself be led off, she couldn't help feeling that, minus the time Aang almost died, tonight had been one of the worst nights of her life – including the time she spent in the Boiling Rock.

* * *

How could this have happened?

It wasn't suppose to be like this.

He wasn't suppose to feel like this.

But he did. And now it might just have cost him a fragile friendship.

Angrily Zuko stared hard into the spot were Katara had stood moments before. Her presence was still lingering there. It hurt the prince inside to recall how her beautiful face had trembled at his touch.

His strong legs began to buckle under his weight. He had no choice but to drop on his knees, his mind reeling, his heart aching.

It had happened too fast.

Why had he told her he liked her? Why had it done it that way? More importantly, why had she run when she heard it?

Like his element, Prince Zuko burned furiously inside, the cool night air did nothing to caress his scarred face. He pounded the ground with no repercussion, careful to not ignite the grass with any flame.

Finally drawing his head back he cried out one mighty shout that echoed vibrantly throughout the darkened forest. The stirring of some owl-bats could be heard as they flapped their wings about, eager to get away from the source of the sound.

And then nothing.

Zuko sprawled himself against the ground, ready to just lay there and die.

What else was there to do other then fade away?

Running after her was useless.

Wishing he could take back what he'd done was useless.

Being torn between Mai and Katara was useless.

Everything was useless.

"Hey Hotman..."

"WHAT?!"

It came out harsher than he'd meant it, but... well, he did not mean to sound aggravated but he was just a man. And feelings run stronger than whatever we tell ourselves.

Only after noticing the girl behind the voice did he regret unleashing such a tone.

The young blind earthbender had a solemn face but she that she winced at his harsh tone anyway.

"...Sorry... Toph..." He lowered his head in shame.

"...You got that right." She raised a teasing eyebrow moments later.

But not even Toph's taunting could make the prince smile right now. A part of him grew anxious at the presence of the young feisty girl. Afraid that she might have seen the entire ordeal. But mostly... he didn't seem to care anymore.

"How much did you hear?" he asked in earnest.

"Hmm?"

"...I know you probably heard the commotion, hell I'm sure the whole forest heard the shouting."

He took her awkward silence as a yes.

"So... do you want to-"

"No." Zuko flatly refused.

A pause happened before Toph spoke once again. "That's fine with me. I'm not one to really talk about that touchy feely kind of subject. Actually I don't like talking at all that much." The young girl sat down next to the prince shortly before lying herself on her back, hands behind her head in a most relaxed manner.

"You know, I don't really want anyone to be near me right now," the prince tried to make as clear as possible solitude was what he wanted at that moment.

"You said something princey? I couldn't hear anything over your whining just now."

White hot anger flashed in his eyes before reasoning took over. He hadn't known the blind Toph for long and from what he had seen she was stubborn, obnoxious, arrogant, and unwavering. But the girl was also kind and generous in her own way. She had a softer side beneath that rough exterior. This was most likely just her weird way of showing it.

"...fine," he growled, though she had not exactly asked a question.

He began to ignore her as his eyes wandered high into the vast heavens above, hoping to get lost in their beauty and to ignore the gut wrenched pain he felt inside.

Finally he spoke.

"This sucks..."

The sound of the fire crickets' could be faintly heard in the distance.

Zuko could not see the sad smile that appeared upon his companion's face.

"I know." Toph simply stated.

And with that the two did not spoke again throughout the night.

* * *

The next morning brought no relief to Zuko. The kids had retrieved their stuff from Hama's house and camped out in the woods again, and the prince had gotten little sleep from fretting over Katara's reaction. He sought to talk with her again a few times during the night, but she was always sound asleep when he approached her, or too busy to acknowledge him, though he suspected most of it to be by her own design. She even curled up right next to Sokka, staying so close to her brother all night that Zuko couldn't even get near her. With most of his chances to fix things between them squashed, he resolved to let it go, and hope for a better outlook in the morning.

But when the dawn came, stiffness set in over his legs and shoulders from carrying the victims of Hama's imprisonment coupled with sleeping on the cold, hard ground, and Katara's attitude seemed to have darkened, if anything. He was sure now she was avoiding him. It wasn't as bad yet as it had been before they'd gone to the Boiling Rock because at least she wasn't shooting him evil looks or making snide remarks, but after the bond he'd become accustomed to sharing with her, this cold shoulder was increasingly frustrating. The rare times she was forced to acknowledge Zuko's existence, she gave him the briefest interaction possible, usually stiff and overly formal.

"How come I have to carry all this stuff?" Sokka whined. "You're barely carrying anything, Katara!"

"Well, that's because I'm not the one who bought _three _outfits for my girlfriend."

"Hey," Sokka protested. "Zuko didn't mind. Did you, Zuko?"

"No," Zuko spoke up quickly, finally invited into one of Katara's conversations. "It's perfectly all right with me. I don't mind at all."

Katara blinked at him a few moments before she realized it would be nearly impossible to ignore him without alerting the rest of the group. "Fine," she settled on, "if it was all right with you, then I'm sure you won't mind helping Sokka carry some stuff."

And without waiting for any sign of agreement, she turned and joined Aang in dousing their campfire, the hissing sounds of fading steam crushing all chance at further conversation.

So now a stiff, sore Zuko was forced to carrying his own stuff, plus half of Sokka's excess, while the grumpy Katara continued to ignore him. "Why didn't we bring Appa again?" Zuko muttered to Sokka when Aang announced they were almost halfway back and they could stop for the night.

"Too conspicuous," Sokka grumbled back. "But I'm starting to wish we had. I mean, if Toph earthbended and we got away, I don't think having Appa around would be a problem."

"Right." Zuko was feeling personally that it was too early to say if the had actually gotten away with Toph's display of earthbending.

Sokka didn't seem to pick up on Zuko's doubt. "Well, at least we have plenty of food to eat," he theorized dreamily. "And full bellies make happy campers."

"With all the food you guys bought, we could feed an army."

"Or a Chi Tzang," Sokka corrected, and Zuko bit back his comment about leaving some of it behind as it was so heavy. "Man," he grumbled, eying his sister. "You'd think now that we finally got food for her, she'd be happy, but Katara seems to be in a strange mood… She's acting the same way she did when we first joined Dad on the Fire Navy ship. I think something's up with her."

Zuko tensed. "I, ah… hadn't noticed."

"Really?" Sokka marveled. "Because I thought the majority of it was directed towards you."

"Well, she had a rough night last night," Zuko provided. "She was pretty shaken up by the whole bloodbending thing."

"Yeah." Sokka paused to consider that. "That Hama must have really upset her – she hasn't come to sleep next to me since she was six, when she finally got over Dad leaving…"

"Wouldn't your mother's death have been more traumatizing?" Zuko asked, recalling the night his own mother left.

Sokka's face fell slightly. "I don't think she ever got over that."

* * *

Sokka eyed Katara as she laid her sleeping bag out next to his again. "What?" she asked, when his suspicion began to agitate her.

"Nothing!" he was too quick to answer. She lifted an eyebrow. "Okay, something. Katara… are you sure you're okay?"

"Okay? Of course I'm okay. Why would you ask that?" Sokka motioned to their touching sleeping bags with fervor. "Oh, you afraid to sleep next to a girl now?"

"First of all," Sokka ticked off on his finger, "in situations like these, little sisters don't count as girls." Katara rolled her eyes. "Second of all, did you fight with Aang?"

"Aang? Why would I fight with him?"

"Toph?" Sokka pestered.

"No."

"Zuko then?"

"Sokka…" Her voice took on the warning quality that said his annoying wild guesses were putting her on edge.

"All right, all right," he assured her, backing away and beginning to climb into his bag. Then he opened one eye again as he tilted his head towards his sister. "Is it that whole thing with Hama still then?"

"Do I have to have a problem to sleep near you?" she demanded.

"No," Sokka denied. "But you usually do. And anyone would be a bit shaken up after that." His voice took on a sympathetic tone, earning him a slightly more grateful look from his sibling. "I mean, even Zuko said you were having a tough time."

Her face fell. "Oh, and if Zuko says it, then it must be true."

"Geeze, Katara, it was just a statement."

"Well you know what," Katara declared, standing up and snatching her bag. "If you trust Zuko so much, then why don't you go sleep next to him, and you can just be best buddies like you were on your boys only camping trip." She heaved her bag over her arms and stomped off. "I hope you'll both be very happy!" she called angrily before marching over to a surprised Aang and laying out her bed beside him.

Sokka grumbled as he rolled over in his own bag angrily, and Katara tossed her hair as she dropped onto her own. Aang blinked a few times, but the young Avatar didn't seem to have any protests to Katara's proximity. Rather, he seemed to like having her so near, even enough to do a bit of sucking up. "So, what's up with him?" Aang asked, gesturing at her brother curiously.

"Nothing," Katara huffed. "He just thinks I have to be avoiding someone or having nightmares to sleep near him."

"Well," Aang asked cautiously. "…Are you?"

"Avoiding someone?" Katara repeated, affront appearing on her face.

"I meant having nightmares." Aang corrected her very quickly, but then his face seemed to take on a more worried expression. "But if you were avoiding someone-"

"I'm not."

"Fair enough," the Avatar agreed. "As long as, you know, it's not me you're avoiding."

Katara seemed to relax a little. "Why would I avoid you, Aang?" she asked, realizing the reason for his concern.

"I don't know." He shrugged. "It just seems like you haven't wanted to be near me since, you know… last night. I was afraid I said something wrong."

"No, Aang," Katara reassured her friend. "It's not you, I swear. It's just… I'm a little flustered right now. I need some time to just… work through things, you know? I don't know if I'm ready to talk about all of it yet."

"Well, when you are," Aang promised, reaching out to close his hand over hers. "I'll be here."

But as their hands met and Aang donned his sweetest smile, Katara's hand jerked away, pulling out of his. He blinked up at his friend, confusion in his young features. "I'm sorry," Katara told him quickly, but she didn't return her hand to his. "Could we… could we just sleep now? I think I need some rest."

"Oh, ah... all right," the Avatar agreed, but Katara could tell his heart wasn't fully in it.

Still, the boy accepted her mood without protest, and lay down himself, leaving a clear space between them.

"Aang," she sighed. "I didn't mean it like that."

"It's okay," he insisted, looking back towards her. "I know you're still upset about everything. I understand."

"Hey, Aang," Katara pointed out gently, "if I was avoiding you, would I be here now?"

A small smile crossed the boy's face. "Thanks, Katara," he grinned, rolling towards her to sleep on his side. "Sleep well."

"You too," she wished, getting comfortable in her own covers.

But comfortable or not, Katara knew the boys were right. She was trying to avoid Zuko, and, worse, she'd had strange, twisted dreams the night before, and she was afraid they'd be coming again tonight.

Bloodbending had done something to her, inside. It wasn't something physical; it was more the fact that she _knew _she had done something really wrong, and she couldn't change it. That unreasonable feeling cast a nasty shade of doubt and self loathing over most of her dreams.

And then Hama herself had thrown Katara's world out of proper perception. Someone she had looked up to, admired so much, someone she had been so similar too, had fallen so far. Hama had twisted what Katara thought was good into something dark, something that was in Katara too. And the only excuse Katara could find for it lay once again at the feet of the firebenders. To the firebenders and soldiers who had attacked their village.

And every time she got back there, to the raiders that had ruined her home, to the murderers that had destroyed Hama's life, she always found Zuko at the heart of it.

Why him having a crush on her seemed such a horrible thing, she was unsure. But she did know that Zuko scared her, especially now that she knew what was behind all the looks he was giving her. But, more importantly, at the root of it, the fact that he was keeping it secret from her made it seem like Hama had been right, made him seem like all the other firebenders again. It was stupid, and unfair, but it was how she felt.

Quite frankly, she was glad he wasn't in league with their enemies, that she knew of, but whatever his reason, she was just plain old tired of being lied to by him. Every time she tried to be his friend, and when she did, he always held back, found some way to hurt her, or trick her. Like now.

It wasn't that him liking her was even that bad in and of itself. Crushes could be stupid things, Katara told herself, she knew from experience. But what really hurt is that she thought that he had respected her. He'd said that he wanted to prove to her that he could be good, that her opinion mattered, and that had meant something to her. Back in the Boiling Rock, when he had said that, she'd believed him, and she'd even admired him. She had really wanted to be his friend – she'd even given him her mother's necklace! And then she found out that the reason he'd been doing all that, the reason he'd taken lashes, and tried so hard to get in her good books, wasn't because he respected her or valued her friendship, but because he had some crazy crush on her.

It just… twisted everything. Every look they'd shared, their time in prison, even the deeper meanings behind their conversations began to take on a warped sense so confusingly similar to the twisted way she had liked Hama, before the old woman had grown dark and treacherous.

And Katara knew all the signs had been there! It bothered her even more that they had, because Zuko obviously had been reading them, and he just let her blunder along the entire time, making an idiot of herself. _I thought he cared about what I said back in prison. I thought my words meant something to him. But I didn't know they meant… what he thought they did!_

She felt stupid! Stupid for not seeing Hama for what she was, and stupid for trusting Zuko to be something he wasn't. She had fallen for it too. That desire to be his friend, that strange, irresistible bond that had grown so rapidly between them. And he'd even warned her! But she still let it grow too fast. So fast, she had forgotten completely to be suspicious of him.

It was her own nature, to believe in someone, to forgive time and time again that which should not be forgiven. In a world like theirs, full of hate and betrayal, she knew she didn't have what it took to survive the way Hama had. She didn't have what it took to be a bloodbender. And she didn't want it.

But somehow, she regretted not having it.

When her eyes finally did close, she was haunted with twisted dreams again, some nightmares, some not, but all leaving a bitter taste in her mouth. The worst were the ones about bloodbending. She felt herself being controlled again, broken down from the inside out and made to bow to Hama's will, or the Fire Lord's, Azula's, and worst of all, sometimes Zuko's. Sometimes, she was the one forcing others to bend, feeling their knees hit the ground, watching their spirits break. In one dream, she wept as she broke men from the fire nation, trapping them beneath the mountain like Hama had, and in another she laughed, as the faces of the men bowing forcibly before her morphed into the half remembered visions she had of the raiders who had sacked her town and killed her mother. These ones often woke her, and as cold sweat poured down her face, she just hoped she hadn't cried out.

Other dreams were less frightening, but no less twisted. Zuko was taking lashes for her again, but this time because she had been bloodbending and hurting people, because she was evil. But as he watched her with those burning golden eyes, his sacrifice turned cruel, and she began to burn herself, as if caught on fire just by his gaze. While she burned, he laughed, and kissed her again. In another, Mai watched her, though Katara couldn't remember all of the girl's features, crying out as she was punished back in jail, calling Katara all manner of names, while the waterbender tried to insist that she didn't want Zuko, that it was all a misunderstanding. And in another dream, she was back beside the river, and Zuko was kissing her, but this time she kissed him back. When she looked away, she realized Aang was watching, and she felt horror sweep over her, but when she looked back to Zuko, it wasn't his face she saw. Instead, the man in her arms was none other than _him,_ the terrible memory of the monstrous brown eyed gaze, and hated face of the man who had killed her mother, still so clear in her mind.

By the time morning came, Katara was already awake in bed. This was her second haunted night since the bloodbending incident, and all the dreams were beginning to twist into one giant, confused knot in her stomach. Most of it she couldn't change, so it centered around the only thing she had any power over. Zuko.

Whatever she thought, however she dreamed, he was always at the heart of it, him and his secrets and his lies. No matter how she wanted to be his friend before, she knew she couldn't forget that he was a firebender, and traitor, and she almost had. She almost had.

The next day it became easier and easier to ignore him, and she found herself slipping too simply into her old, spiteful habits. Just knowing he was looking at her made her angry now, and he had resorted back to the liar she had suspected him to be in the beginning in her guilty, sleep deprived mind. And every time he did something to disprove that, to make her like him again, it twisted inside her, and made her angrier.

By the time they reached camp again, Katara was nearly back to her original state of hate for him, bolstered by her obsession over Hama's story and the fate of her own village. Her mother's death hung heavily over her head again, and somehow that and all the other deaths were piling up, right at Zuko's feet.

At first, he tried to talk to her, but once she made it clear she didn't want to talk to him, he settled with trying to prove himself in other ways. He carried extra stuff without complaining, and was always quick to offer a hand (which she ignored) or help her in small ways, up a rock, across a bridge, when she slipped. But all of these things seemed to make Katara angrier, and eventually he was forced to back off completely, leaving her with only Aang for company.

But at least the Avatar was comfortable company. He watched her interactions with Zuko disapprovingly, but he was careful to keep his mouth shut. He knew Katara, and he knew that if she was acting like this, she would have her reasons, even if she didn't want to say them out loud, and Katara was grateful for that. Aang's ability to stay beside her, to trust her without needing answers, was a blessing at that time. And they had plenty else to talk about.

"I just don't think there's time, Aang. Now matter how you turn it."

The Avatar sighed as he glanced at Katara. "But I can't let Ozai get that comet, can I? Think about how horrible things would get if he did."

"Honestly," she stated, "what else could get worse?"

Aang was quiet after that, but it didn't matter, because they reached the air temple minutes later. Hakoda, Chi Tzang, and Haru flew up on Appa to meet them, and help carry all the stuff down to the air temple, and as all the food was unloaded on the main area beneath, Katara found herself sincerely hoping that a good meal would help improve her outlook, because she was feeling incredibly bleak.

"How much longer do you think we're going to stay here?" Hakoda asked over dinner.

"What do you mean?' Katara asked. "We're safe here. We should stay as long as we can."

"We're safe for now," Suki reminded. "But what about the rest of the world?"

"Aang has to learn firebending," Sokka spoke up. "That has to come first. And he's been working really hard, haven't you Aang?"

"Yeah," Aang agreed, but his tone said that he felt the pressure of the outside world as well.

"What about our families?" Haru spoke up. "Our friends that were captured in the invasion. If we were out there, maybe we could help them, like you helped your father."

"The most important thing is that we help the Avatar," Hakoda reminded them. "I was lucky that you boys came to get me, but you really shouldn't have. If truth be told, I would have rather stayed there if it would have given us a better chance at victory in the long run, and I am sure the other prisoners feel the same."

"I agree," Teo spoke up. "Father told me that before, when we chose to help Aang instead of assist the Fire Nation. I'm sure he still believes it."

"But then what are we doing here?" Suki demanded. "Aang can learn firebending anywhere. Why are we hiding here, when we could be out there making a difference?"

"And what would you have us do?" Katara asked. "Ba Sing Se has fallen, Omashu is now New Ozai, the Northern Water Tribe was practically wiped out in the last attack, and everyone from the Southern able to fight has been captured minus the three of us. Who's left? Who should we be protecting?"

"I don't know," Suki admitted, chewing on her lip.

"I'll tell you who," Katara finished. "Aang. We protect the Avatar. And if he's safe here, then I say we stay as long as we can – as long as it takes."

"So," Chi Tzang asked, raising a hand, "you guys still intend to fight the Fire Lord? You still think you can stop him, even now?"

"Yes," Katara voice was firm. "As long as Aang is alive, we still have hope."

"I think we should move." Zuko words cut suddenly across hers, and he felt her glare shift to him, as if deciding if it would be better to continue ignoring him, or to respond and argue.

But before she could decide, her brother spoke up. "What?" Sokka asked. "Why?"

"We've been here too long. Eventually they'll find us."

Katara sniffed, unable to keep silent afterall. "They haven't found us yet, and we've been here weeks! How do you expect them to find the lost air temple?"

"I found you," Zuko reminded them.

"You always find us," Katara barked back. "Or did you forget?"

"Chu Jung found you."

"Who?" The Duke piped up curiously.

"Ah… Combustion-Man," Zuko defined.

"He had a name?" Toph asked, astounded.

"That's not the point," the Prince sighed. "The point is, Suki and Haru are right. Even if there's not much left to protect, we're cut off from the rest of the world here. I don't think that it sits well with Aang."

"I'm sure Aang can speak for himself," Katara interrupted hotly.

"And," Zuko hesitated, already used to Katara's belittling of him again, "there's another thing. Toph?"

"Yeah, um…" The girl glanced at her bare feet as they rocked back and forth nervously. "I might have kind of earthbended back at the last village."

"You what?" Sokka gasped from across the fire.

"I was trying to save the people there!" Toph insisted. "Did you expect Princy here to carry all like twenty of those injured people by himself?"

"What injured people?" Hakoda asked.

"Just another long story, Dad," Katara dismissed his question. "Toph, how could you do that? What if they captured you?"

"I said I was from the colonies, and Zuko vouched for me," she protested. "Besides, it's not like I'm a waterbender. The Earth Kingdoms have been captured by the Fire Nation; I'm sure there are going to be a lot of earthbenders integrating into their society."

"Yeah, but not a lot of blind ones strolling around with the banished prince," Sokka reminded. "Azula would recognize the story in a heartbeat if she heard it."

"The we'll just have to hope that she won't!" Toph insisted. "Look, I did what I had to, and not one of those prisoners reported me to the rest of the villagers, but even if, somehow, the story gets out and Azula hears it, and then she somehow manages to track us to this location by some crazy streak of luck-"

"It is Azula," Zuko frowned.

"-well, isn't that just one more reason to leave?" Toph started. "I'm sure there are plenty of other places we could go, right? I feel the same as Zuko – we're too cut off from the rest of the world here. We have no idea what's happening out there, and except for the people who keep running off on little side adventures, we're cooped up. It's making everyone feisty."

"Oh," Katara bit off, "you're one to talk."

"Enough," Aang interrupted. "Stop fighting, I've heard enough. Katara, they're right. We've stayed in one place too long. We should move. And… I'm the Avatar. I need to be somewhere where I feel involved in the world. Staying here this long is… depressing."

"But Aang, what if-"

"What if they find us?" he finished her sentence. "Isn't that the same worry we have here? At least out there we'll have food, and news. Besides, it's only a matter of time until they catch us here, so it's the same story anywhere. We should move on."

"Where do we go?" Hakoda asked.

"What?" Toph turned to him with her pale eyes.

"If we leave here, where do we go?" the warrior repeated. "I'm for leaving too, but I don't like to just blindly act. If we're going to move out, we should have a plan."

"I second that," Sokka spoke up. "We need to decide on a solid place, as well as travel arrangements. Appa can't carry us all, and walking with a flying bison is even more conspicuous than Aang's arrow or Zuko's scar."

"If need be," Hakoda considered, "we can always split up, and have a group on foot and one on Appa."

"We shouldn't split up," Katara immediately denied. "There's so few of us left."

"Still," Hakoda reminded his daughter, "the most important thing is that Aang and his teachers get away. If it comes down to it, your four should take him and Appa and go. We can meet up a rendezvous point."

"Which is… where?" Katara asked.

"The Northen Water Tribe?" Toph suggested, having been the only one not to go there.

"Too far," Sokka denied. "And too obvious. They'd look for us there for sure."

"The swampbenders?" Aang suggested.

"Too dirty," Sokka rejected, making a disgusted face.

"Besides," Hakoda added, "since they caught your friends from there, I'm sure the Fire Nation is well aware there's waterbenders in that area now."

"How about that abandoned island where we met for the invasion?" Sokka offered.

"Didn't I already tell you it's under surveillance now?" Zuko reported, apparently for a second time.

"Oh… right…"

"We could go back to the tree house," The Duke suggested. "The Freedom Fighters are supposed to meet up there in less than a month. We could rally their support, or at least hide there for a while. The Fire Nation has never found us in our trees."

"The Freedom Fighters?" Zuko asked, his tone oddly familiar with the name.

Katara glanced sideways at Sokka, both wondering how much The Duke knew about Jet, but both too unsure of his fate to speak to the boy. It seemed harsh to tell him his leader was dead anyway. It should be a matter for his friends, for Smellerbee and Longshot. "Ah…" Sokka considered. "I'd rather go somewhere a little more… secure."

"Kyoshi Island?" Suki recommended.

"That's plausible…"

They continued thinking of ideas for the rest of the evening, but by the end they had no firm plan. Hakoda finally called a halt and suggested they pick up the discussion again in the morning, and use the night to think up solid idea on their own instead of just brainstorming randomly. Each spent the night wracking their brains for the best place to move on to, as well as dreaming of things like freeing their families, or traveling back to their own homes. But when the morning came, there was no time for planning afterall.


	28. Chapter 28:Falling

Author's Note:

_artsyelric:HAPPY BIRTHDAY TROMBE! this is the first chapter you posted since, so even though it's a bit late - trombe's 22 now guys! hurray!_

**Trombe: ... **

_artsyelric: ...well, i'm sure he'll comment when he has time..._

_ ps, for those of you who can't find my ff site, it's www. fanfiction .net _ /_ (TILDA) artsyelric (obviously minus spaces, and a tilda is that thing beneath your escape key they tag onto all ff address - they won't let me save it on this stupid site...)__ so if you want to message me and were finding it hard... there you go...__ or, if you find all of that complicated or w/e and just want a link, i favorited myself on trombe's author list... sorry dude! forgive me? -puppy dog eyes- (oh yeah, he's not there right now... looks like i escape his wrath another time! muwahahaha!)  
_

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 28: Falling **

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Zuko woke to the sound of explosions, berating himself silently for sleeping past dawn. Everyone was asleep right where they had been last night, all huddled around the center area, and all of them were stirring awake as the ground shook and the cliff trembled, stone pieces chipping away from the ceiling and falling dangerously close to them.

"It's an attack!" Aang shouted in alarm, airbending a few more bombs away as they shot in over the cliff edge, and making a run to the open area to face whoever it was.

Zuko already knew the perpetrator behind the sneak attack. No one else in the world could have been more sneaky.

As a fleet of war balloons appeared on the horizon, Aang retreated back to the safety of the air temple, quickly bending closed the defensive metal screens the airbenders of old had installed, surrounding all his waking friends with their minimal protection as bombs continued to fly over the edge.

"How did they find us so fast?" the Avatar called.

"It's Azula," Zuko shouted back. "What did you expect?"

"I don't think this will hold long," Toph reported, rapping the metal frame Aang had closed around them with her knuckles. "We'd better move. Fast."

People started to grab at their things, throwing everything together quickly as the ground trembled again and rocks fell on all sides. As Katara snatched up her sleeping bag, another bomb crashed against the roof of their defense, and Zuko stumbled as it hit. Catching himself, he saw a huge portion of the stone roof design dislodge from the trembling temple and begin falling straight towards the waterbender. "Watch out!" he warned, immediately diving towards her to push her out of the way.

As he barreled into Katara, he remembered suddenly how mad at him she was. He hadn't recalled yet this morning, and had almost thought they were friends again. His concern for her being hurt had pushed it out of his mind at least. But as he felt her body collide with his, he remembered his so-called confession, and as Katara glared up at him angrily, her reaction to it hit home again.

"What are you doing?" she shouted angrily, attempting to push up off the ground while still pinned under him.

"Keeping rocks from crushing you," he told her, disgruntled; _I _did _just save your life!_

"Okay, I'm not crushed," she growled, pushing against the ground again. "You can get off me now."

Frustration was slowly making the prince's eye twitch. Secretly, the hazel eyed firebender confessed, he enjoyed the feeling that he had pinned the defiant waterbender down on the ground momentarily, in spite of her absurd attitude. But the shaking ground reminded him that there was much more at stake at the moment than dealing with Katara's mood swings. Now was definitely not the time for that. He let her up, and the girl darted off, apparently perfectly aware of that fact herself. "I'll take that as a thank you," he called after her, before finding his own feet and helping everyone grab their stuff.

Toph and Haru opened up a tunnel through the rock in the back of the air temple, and as all their stuff was snatched up or heaved on Appa, the group made its way back towards the safety of the stone cave. "Come on," Toph called to the last ones. "We can get out through here."

Zuko quickly assessed the situation. Hakoda had Teo in his chair, and Aang was tugging mightily on Appa's reigns. But the beast didn't seem to be moving at all towards the tunnel. Instead, the bison was growling and throwing his head about the more Aang tugged. This was not good. The temporary metal shielding the air temple provided was crumbling with every second. Even if they made it in the cave, firebenders would be boarding the area any minute. At this rate, a confrontation was inevitable.

Quickly he came to a decision.

Instead of heading for the tunnel, Zuko turned instead towards the front of the cliff, where the bombs were coming in from. "What are you doing?" Aang shouted behind him, noticing his motion.

"Go ahead," the Prince called back. "I'll hold them off. I think this is a family visit." Zuko voice lowered as he said the last, and without waiting for Aang's response, he ran off towards the enemy.

It was time.

Time to prove that all his hardship, all his struggle, all he had fought for, were not in vain. The crossroads of his destiny had provided him a second chance, a rare opportunity to choose his own future, despite his last... fiasco. This time, he would not falter again. This time, he _knew _what he wanted.

This was not the Avatar's fight. Not now.

What the Avatar needed now was time, time for him and his group to get away. Zuko would provide them that.

This, right now, was Zuko's battle.

The blazing roar of sailing fireballs exploded all round Zuko, who ignored their ear piercing sounds as he vaulted over the steel confines, concentrating on his heavy breathing as he ran pass the debris and the incoming projectiles.

Time seemed to slow down, everything else faded into the realm of black and white. His heart pounded with exhilaration. The world around him was a mess of fire and explosions. One wrong step, and Zuko knew he'd be torn apart just like air temple, and luck had never been on his side.

But he didn't need it. He wasn't Sokka, quirky, funny and oh, such a lucky fighter. Nor was he Azula, brilliant and perfect to a frustrating degree. He wasn't any of them - Aang, Toph, Katara - No! He was Zuko. Zuko, who worked hard every second of every day to stand a fighting chance. Zuko, who made his own luck.

And for once, his perseverance paid off. Somehow, his eyes locked on the attacking balloons before him, he managed to avoid all bombs and crumbling rocks, running full pelt towards edge of the temple, firing a shot of flames of his own back at the balloons. And then luck truly did smile on him, for the first time he could actually recall.

As he approached the edge, the wild chaos of battle raging around him, his eyes searched for a target, something to attack, to buy time. And it came to him, wrapped in a lining of silver clouds. Azula.

She was perched on the lookout station atop the foremost balloon, and she rose over the side of the temple just as Zuko neared her. Rocks tumbled away from the structure behind him, shaking the ground beneath his feet, but Zuko didn't have a glance to spare them. His eyes were locked on his sister's. He could feel everything that had ever past between them, their entire history, spanned out between them. The tension was so thick, he could almost taste it. "What are you doing here?" he demanded over the thundering sounds of war.

His sister's face curled into a wicked expression. "You mean it's not obvious yet?" she declared. "I am about to celebrate becoming an only child!"

Even as she finished the sentence, Azula flipped forward in a fluid motion, swinging around the bars of the airship, to deliver two feet full of blue fire Zuko's direction. As the flames burst from her soles, she used the force they created to spin her back in the opposite direction. She pivoted around the front of bar backwards now, returning her to the safety of the airship lookout again where she landed solidly. Even as her flames sped towards him, Zuko couldn't help but think it had been a very Ty Lee like move.

But that was all the time he had for thought, as the fire was coming towards him at an alarming pace. He turned immediately and flung himself back, away from them in into the air temple even as the searing bout of hot air caught him in the back. Feeling the force of her raging blast strike the ground where he had just been, he was glad the explosion was blowing him back into the temple and not sending him flying off the edge.

That is, he was glad until he smashed into the ground and rolled, skidding along the uneven surface with a series of grunts, only stopping when he crashed into a stone wall. Or was it a wall? The temple was so mangled around him, it was hard to tell what anything was anymore. Plus, now his head was pounding furiously to top it off. The entire platform he was fighting from was crumbling away, breaking up bit by bit, like a cliff besieged by earthquake. And there was still no way to reach Azula.

But his determination set back in. He would _not _come in second place to her again. As he pushed himself back to his feet, shaking his ringing head briefly, his eyes locked on her, his target set. He looked to his right, and noticed a falling pillar, just tumbling out into the vast expanse of sky, mere feet from him, and heading straight towards his sister's position. The timing was too perfect. It was as if his destiny was showing him what to do in so blatantly obvious a manner that he couldn't mess it up this time.

The ceiling crumbled above him, giving way, and he took off, heading for his last chance. His feet made contact with the crumbling stone column, and he began to run up it without hesitation, feeling it fall faster under his weight, tipping dangerously out into the sky. He didn't stop to consider how crazy this was. He just ran.

As he reached the end, he vaulted off it, using both his forward momentum and the height of his jump to push away from the edge of the stone pillar, and felt the temple crash behind him, crumbling away and falling down the precipice and into oblivion. Now there was nothing around him but air.

His mind spun, and he forced it to return to calm. Panicking now would make things worse. He was no airbender, to fly through the sky with a whirl of acrobatics. He was a firebender, and firebenders attacked first. His target was still before him, and he focused on his sister, the wind whipping her bangs around her head in each cruel gust of air. It made her look somewhat insane.

But insane or not, she was the focus Zuko needed to keep his wits. Ignoring the rushing air around him, and the endless drop below him, he curled his fists and fired at her. The first one was way off, but the second attack seemed more adjusted. His mind was off of falling. It was focused again now, focused on Azula. He was going to make it onto that balloon, and he was going to take her out. That's all there was too it.

He fired a third shot even as Azula was forced to abandon her lookout as his second volley of flames struck home. She flipped forward off it and landed on the top of the balloon, bouncing slightly as she found footing on the hot air filled fabric.

And then she was gone. Balloon had risen up between her and Zuko, and he could no longer see her. His mind reeled as he realized why. The balloon was rising past him. He was still flying forward, but it wasn't fast enough. There was no soft fabric for him to land on, like his sister had. He was going to miss it.

Then solid metal rose in front of him, red and gold and covered in bolts, and before he could fully process it, he slammed into it, just barely managing to hit with his feet first, to take some of the force off the collision. There was a metallic thump as his head struck against the steel, but he didn't stop to deal with a headache. His hands scrambled against the unyielding surface, fingers digging in, searching for something, anything, he could get a handhold on.

Just as he was sure he was going to slide right off the edge and into the gaping hole below him, his burned fingers finally grasped an edge. His arm snapped harshly as his body weight was pulled to a jarring halt, and he almost lost his grip. Swinging dangerously, he scrambled to grab hold of the edge with his uninjured hand, but whatever it was he had caught hold of was too narrow for two hands. His fingers curled tightly as he felt a cramp starting in his palm.

But before he could even start to think of a way out of this, Azula's face appeared above him as she crept towards the edge of the balloon. She peered down. "I should have known you wouldn't go so quickly!" she called down, drawing Zuko's attention immediately. He craned his neck to catch a glimpse of his snarling sister. "No matter, though. You've made my job too easy, Zuzu."

With a wicked smile, she sent a volley of flames streaming down the side of the balloon, straight at her dangling brother.

As the malevolent blue blasts drew closer, Zuko eyes widened, reflecting the fiery death descending on this how it was all to end? He hadn't even fought her! His whole life, Azula had been his demon, both siblings living perpetually in the shadow of the other; the older brother, the gifted sister. Both forever unable to rise above the other.

Was it not their fate that they should fight?

He had felt just moments before that his destiny had been leading him to confrontation with the wild woman above him. Where had that luck gone?

And then he remembered. It didn't matter.

He made his own luck.

He made his own fate.

He would _not _die here.

Feeling the determination well up in his stomach, he released blasts from his flailing left hand, causing his body to swing more precariously, but he forced his tortured fingers to hold on. His attacks collided above him with Azula's stopping them from dislodging him. Embers fell around him, hissing out of existence as they were swept away into the vast emptiness below him, lost the same way Chu Jung, his extra eyed mercenary, had gone. Zuko knew he had no more chance of coming up from that fall than his so called 'sparky-sparky-boom-man' had. Yet that seemed to be where Azula was determined to send him.

"Fine, brother," her voice whipped down from above him. "You want to play rough? Then how about we send you off with a little... lightning!"

Her hand lifted into the air, her fingers serving as the conduit for the crackling death she was about to bend. Zuko knew how it worked, he could see it coming. But he couldn't stop it. Dangling on the edge of disaster as he was, there was no chance of reflecting it.

But there was also little chance Azula could land a hit as difficult as this.

However, even that small amount of hope was crushed as the princess released the lightning not as a bolt, aimed hopefully for her struggling brother, but directly into the metal works of the airship itself. As she bent and pressed the fingers of her second hand into the steel bracing of the balloon, she was protected by the fabric separating her from the charged metallic skeleton. Mere moments after her red-nailed fingertips had touched the steel, Zuko felt tingling sensation of her electric charge shock through his cramping fingers.

Above him, she cackled, knowing she had him. "Fall, Zuzu!" she ordered, sending a stronger pulse through the ship. "Let go and die!"

Zuko's body cramped as the lightning fed into him, and he felt his knees jerk up to his chest harshly when he tried to center the force of the lightning in his belly. But at least, with his training, he could keep it away from his heart. Deluded as it was by coursing through the vast amount of metal between him and his sister, it didn't seem to be strong enough to kill him. He could hear some of the men in the ship on metal parts adjacent to Zuko's own crying out harshly as the lightning shocked them as well. For a moment, he couldn't believe Azula was attacking her own men and ship just to get him. But then he remembered it was Azula.

His legs twitched again under the strain of the lightning. He was sure now it was no where near enough to kill him. But it was plenty strong enough to make him lose his grip, and the longer he held on, the closer he came to letting go.

His mind reeling, he clung tighter to the painful metal, and Azula growled above him. The lightning increased the slightest bit more, and Zuko heard the sounds of the propelling fan crackling under the strain of the electricity coursing through it before his own body caved as well. His fingers twitched uncontrollably, and his hold was lost. Even as the slight burning feel of the electricity left him, replaced by the rushing sound of air all around him, he reached for the sparking metal, wishing only to have his hand back on it. Even if it shocked him, even if that annoying lightning quivered through his body again, it was better than the alternative.

But the ship was gone now, fading away, up into the sky. His had was still outstretched towards it, even as he realized it was too late.

He was falling.

* * *

Fire exploded all around them as Aang shouted. "Zuko, no!" The Avatar started to chase after the crazed prince, but Sokka and Katara rushed to his side.

"Aang!" Sokka roared. "Come on! We've got to get outta here!"

"But Zuko-"

"Forget him," Katara called, grabbing Appa's reigns. "We've got to GO!"

Aang finally complied, gripping the reigns with Katara and Sokka again as the waterbender watched Zuko's form leap over the crumbling wall and disappear in the fracas beyond._ Good riddance, _she tried to think, but somehow her insides squirmed against her, and worry she wanted to deny began to gnaw at her.

Then there was a burst of blue flames that made Appa shout out and take a halting step towards them, as well as crumble the roof all around them. Toph rushed to hold it up, and Katara pushed her worry for the prince aside. As far as she was concerned, any fight he had with Azula, they had both brought upon themselves.

Finally, Aang gave up on moving Appa. "It's no use guys," he told the water tribe siblings in frustration. "I can't get him to go in there." He glanced at their friends behind him in the mouth of the cave. "Appa hates tunnels."

"Aang," Katara protested, still tugging against the bison, "there's no way we can fly out of here. Did you see all the air ships?"

"It doesn't matter," Aang insisted. "We'll have to find a way."

Sokka glanced at the two of them, finally dropping the reigns himself. His face fell. "Sorry guys," he said quietly before raising his voice so everyone in the cave could hear too. "We need to split up."

"What!" Katara demanded, releasing her own grip on Aapa's reigns. "No!"

But Sokka ignored her, running quickly back to where his father and rest stood inside the cave, bushing his unkempt hair out of his face as he pointed. "Take the tunnel and get to the stolen airship," he directed. "Toph, you're with us. Haru, you can handle the tunnel. Chi Tzang-"

"I'll power the ship," the man spoke up quickly. "Don't you worry about that."

"And I can fly it," Hakoda interrupted, jumping automatically to the conclusion of his son's plan. "You guys keep Aang safe."

"No!" Katara rejected them a second time, her voice more commanding and decisive now. "Didn't you hear me? No! We don't even have a plan! The Fire Nation _can't _separate our family again! I won't let it," she added determinedly, striding over to her father and brother.

"It'll be okay," Hakoda promised, grabbing her shoulders as she squared off. "It's not forever."

"It's NOT okay!" she shouted. "Where are we going to meet again?"

But no one had an answer yet.

"We don't have time for this," Sokka said instead of answering her question. "Katara, I'm sorry, but we don't!" he added defensively when she glared at him sharply; he seemed very flustered, the effect emphasized by the crazy way his unbound hair fell around his face.

"Look at me," Hakoda ordered, and Katara's attention was diverted. Just the sound of his voice, the steel behind it, brought back memories for her, and she knew that the boys had reached a decision she could not change. She tried to look away, despite her father's command, but he grabbed her face as tears welled up in her eyes. As his big, gentle hands pulled her face towards his, and her gaze met his own, searching eyes, she felt her vision blur as she prepared for the inevitable. "You have to do this," he father insisted. "For Aang. Keep him safe – that's your job, right?" She sniffed and nodded, as he wiped the beginning of her tears away with his thumbs. "I'll watch out for everyone, and we'll be back together soon. I promise. Now go."

Whether she would ever see her father again or not (and she desperately believed she would), his words had reminded her of something more important. For the fourth, painful time in her life she turned away from her father because she knew she had to be with Aang. Back with Bato, on the fire nation ship, during the invasion, and again... now.

The steel returned to her eyes, this time not against her father, but in preparation for what she must do. Every time she had made this choice, it had been the same, and she had never regretted it. She belong with the Avatar. She belonged with Aang. Quickly throwing her arms around Hakoda, the two embraced for a moment, and then she turned and ran off towards Aang, without glancing back.

As she climbed up onto the bison, she saw Sokka hug their father quickly too before grabbing Suki and running towards them. Katara caught the girl's hand as she pulled her onto the already moving bison and reached down to grab her brother's arm as well. "Figures you'd bring her along," Katara whispered as she pulled him on board.

He glanced at her to make sure she wasn't being smart, but when she smiled through the remainder of the tears in her eyes, he knew she was alright with it and grinned back. "Wouldn't want to have wasted all that money on her new outfit if she didn't get to wear it," he called back as they swung up into Appa's saddle.

Katara glanced back to the hole in the wall, but it was already collapsing behind where her father and friends had disappeared down the tunnel Haru was making. She sighed and turned back to where Toph and Aang were planning their course of action. The blind earthbender lay a hand on the crumbled stone wall she had bent into a protective shield around them. "I can clear that away and we can fly out through there," she reported as a shaft of earth rose easily beneath her feet and launched her up onto Appa's back.

"There's an awful lot of fire coming from that direction," Suki noted doubtfully, helping to steady the earthbender as she landed on the bison.

"There's an awful lot of fire in every direction." Sokka tossed hair out of his face as he corrected his girlfriend.

"We'll get through," Aang insisted simply. Then he took his place on Appa's head, using the strong voice Katara knew meant he wasn't going to be deterred no matter how crazy his plan was. "Let's go."

The waterbender threw her hands over her head as the stones crumbled around them, and Sokka pulled Suki to him. Toph held a few of the stones in front of Appa as they blasted out, using them as a shield against any bombs that were tossed their way.

As they hurtled over the airships, the rocks were completely destroyed by blue flame as Azula appeared watching them from the surface of a balloon. But Appa kept on, and even though their shield faded away, they broke out the other end of the barrage safely.

"Where's Zuko?" Aang called, bringing Appa around. "Shouldn't he be fighting Azula?"

"They must've got him," Suki shouted back.

"Don't stop, Aang," Katara added as Aang started to turn the bison back towards the war balloon. "He's not there."

"No!" Sokka spotted, his voice cracking slightly as he strained to be heard over everything. "Look!"

A second air ship was rising up past Azula's as it tried to turn its giant self around and give pursuit to the Avatar. Atop it stood the solid form of Zuko, his hair whipping about his scarred face in the wind and fire. Azula noticed where the people on Appa's back were looking, and turned as well, her eyes widening as she caught sight of her brother.

* * *

Azula stared at him like he were a ghost.

He did not blame her. By all accounts he should have been a goner. He had believed himself as lost as she had.

But, even as he had braced for a long fall with a sharp ending, his thoughts had been interrupted by a collision with something the very opposite of sharp. Somewhere beneath the misty cloud had been falling through, there had been an airship rising up to join the battle. It seemed, for once, his luck truly had not abandoned him. As the prince bounced and scrambled to his feet atop the thick fabric of the war balloon, he could not help but wonder what benevolent spirit had decided to take hand in his cause. After all he had been through, he had hardly expected such a fortunate ending.

Yet there it had been. His salvation, in the form of his father's destructive balloon.

He silently thanked Sokka for whatever part he had actually had in creating them, no longer caring if the boy's claim was true.

His destiny had not ended yet. As he rose out of the cloud, the headiness of survival left him, and Azula's face appeared before him. Determination set his features, and through the mass of messy hair he had acquired glowered the golden eyes of a rogue prince in no mood to be stopped.

As the balloon left the silvery clouds, it's long shadow fell across Azula's airship. They were far away from each other, their forms small in the distance, but Zuko felt as if he could see her darkened face as clearly as if he had been standing right next to her. Her shoulders squared, and her red lips curled. She set her feet firmly on the very top and center of the balloon, and Zuko knew she was waiting for him to try his disastrous jump again.

He knew there would be no second airship hovering beneath him. This time was it. He had been given a second chance at this, just like he had been so many times before. But he was always better the second time around.

He was not fond of making the same mistakes twice.

He waited.

The air between him and Azula practically crackled. They had both waited so long to fight each other. Would this be it? Would this finally be the moment they came head to head?

Was he ready?

And then he was high enough above her that he judged he could safely make the jump. Forcing his mind not to think, not to remember falling, and the terror that had accompanied it just moments ago, he launched himself off the balloon, preferring to overshoot as much as possible than to miss and slid into emptiness again.

But as his body sprung off his airship, Azula took her cue to move. Flowing into a familiar form, she began to fire mercilessly at his plummeting form. And unlike him, she did not miss.

Knowing he couldn't afford a mistake, he spun his body in the air, gaining speed as centripetal force tightened him in on himself. He stared right at the first attack as he brought his right leg around, and he met the fire with power, kicking it far from him. It ricocheted off into the warship behind him, and he did not stop to follow it's progress. Instead, he let the spin finish pulling him around, his left hand spinning out from his body and sending his own shot of billowing orange flame plowing towards his sister.

As she dodged it, jumping back a bit, Zuko used the momentary diversion as time for him to land. Now slightly angled from his spin, he hit the balloon, which sagged under him, and rolled forward, avoiding the bounce. As he came out of his tucked roll he sprung easily to his feet, vaulting a few feet closer to Azula with the move. His hands whipped forward, following his body, and punching forward he delivered a fiery blast as if he had always intended it to be the conclusion to his move. Confidence was swelling inside him as he flowed from move to move with assurance. His training with Aang had improved his agility despite the fact that he had been training the Avatar rather than the other way around, and his sparing sessions with Sokka had really gotten him thinking outside the box - a quality Azula was unaccustomed to seeing in him. He realized now exactly how his time away from home had given him skills that he would never have been able to attain in the palace. He would use that completely to his advantage.

Plus, just making it successfully onto the balloon had his spirits soaring, a powerful source of energy for his new style of firebending.

Extending his second fist, he continued his assault, hoping, through his focus, to keep the upper hand on Azula, and to progress further up the balloon, both closer to her, and further from the edge. But despite his own determination, Azula was still Azula, and the princess blocked his attack with her forearms and sent a roundhouse of flames streaking towards him.

Blocking with his own arms, he forced the flames to the surface below him, leaping into the air and spinning over them, getting one bound closer to Azula. Finding his root as he landed, he sent more volleys of flame at her, running behind the flames, using them for cover, as he closed the distance between himself and his sister even more, until her own blue fire brought halt to his progress.

Back and forth the flames went, and Zuko blocked even the strongest attacks his sister sent. For the first time in his life, he began to think he might be stronger than her. She was still the better fighter, of that he was sure, but since he had learned to bend out of more than anger, the power behind his attacks had increased. Having no one but a still learning Aang to spar with, he hadn't noticed this before. But now that he was facing off against his sister again, he was able to truly gauge the difference in his attacks. Physically, as far as actually fire power, he might actually have her beat. In fact, he was progressing steadily forward with every block, rather than being blown back.

He could do this.

It was actually possible...

Azula swung her arms left and right, blocking two of his attacks, her face contorting, whether with rage or effort, he was unsure. On the backlash of her second block, blue flames shot towards him. He blocked once, twice, three times, stepping forcefully forward with each swat he took at her flames. Every step he took closer to her increased the force behind her blows, and he struggled to keep count, to keep moving a step ahead of her and not miss a beat.

Four, five, six times he blocked. They were only a few steps apart now. He could feel himself holding his breath and forced himself to breathe again with each motion.

He blocked a seventh blow, forcing his fist right through the center of it. All her power shattered before his strength. He really just might be stronger...

Her eight attack came at him when he was two good paces away from her, and he saw a wicked confidence flit across her features. But he was ready too.

It was time to end this.

Zuko wanted to know who was stronger.

As he smashed her eighth consecutive attack aside with his right hand he saw her draw back half a step even as he moved the last step forward. He was staring straight into her eyes now, and he could tell she knew it was now or never too.

As both siblings pooled everything they had into their fists time seemed to slow for Zuko. Azula's left hand was still drawing back in her pivoting motion as she brought her flaming right fist foward. Her bangs flung around her face as her long features twisted into a smile, so intense and hungry it made her eyes gleam in the light of her own flames. Zuko himself was brushing the last bit of her blue fire away, feeling it part like water around his fingers, revealing Azula's right handed attack and snarling face behind them. At the same time he saw his sister's face through the fire, the flames faded to show her Zuko's own determined features and the raging ball of fire clutched tightly in his left hand.

As if complete mirrors of each other, the siblings stepped into their attacks, both hands slamming forward, and time seemed to rush back into the world. Zuko roared as he swung, and he could hear Azula's high pitched battle cry, though he could see nothing but light. The two blasts hit full on, and it seemed that there was to be no determined victor of this battle after all. Neither one was any stronger than the other.

The power behind both attacks was equal.

The explosions they created, were not.

Zuko was blinded by light, and was blown from his feet, his mind reeling, his head pounding again. Heat scorched his body, but, thankfully, no where did he feel it burn him. Smoke filled his lungs as he grunted, bouncing down the surface of the balloon. The sheer power of his own attack had redoubled on him upon hitting Azula's, and it was sending him skidding down the curved face of the balloon a second time.

Knowing what was coming, he threw his arms out, spinning himself around, trying to catch hold of something, to stop his fall, but as the tumbling force of the explosion died out, the curve of the balloon steepened and gravity picked up where the fire had left off, dragging him down the edge... and sending him soaring a second time out into rushing air and total emptiness.

His last roll had left him tumbling face first off the edge, and his hair streamed back away from him, enabling him to catch of glimpse of something out of the corner of his bad eye.

Azula.

Across from him, on the other side of the airship, he could clearly see her falling too, her arms and legs blowing up behind her as her body twisted in an attempt to right herself.

It looked like they were going to go out together at least.

"ZUKO!"

The high pitched call was so faint through all the air rushing past his ears he wasn't sure if he had heard it.

"ZUKO!" a second voice shouted, and this time he was sure he _had _heard it.

The prince turned his head against the wind of his free fall to see the gigantic white form of Appa making it's way at breakneck speed through the airships, headed right for him.

The prince had never been more glad to see the fuzzy beast.

Aang's eyes were locked determinedly on him, and Zuko could only surmise the young Avatar had been the first to call his name. Sokka, leaning desperately over the side of the saddle must have been the second, as he repeated the call, extending a hand as the group neared the falling firebender.

Behind him, he heard Azula snarl and send a poorly aimed fireblast at the approaching gang, but Aang swatted it aside as if it were nothing, and Sokka began to pass under Zuko.

The prince reached out desperately, Sokka's hand just barely too low for him to grab as the bison blew by him, and he stretched out in the half second he had to reach his friend.

Their fingertips brushed...

...and no more.

He was slipping away from the safety of the saddle, and he saw horror and guilt pass over the water tribe boy's eyes as he was whisked away.

Zuko felt the pounding of his heart in his ears as he realized he was really going to fall this time, and cursed inwardly as the inevitable fear began to rise up in the back of his throat.

But before he could so much as breathe, a second hand shot out with shocking speed. It closed on his wrist, slim fingers wrapping tightly around him. As the hand jolted against him, he closed his own fingers back, grasping onto his rescuer like a lifeline, his gaze whipping towards his savior.

His heart nearly stopped.

Big blue eyes looked back at him.

* * *

Katara cried out when Zuko suddenly ran and launched himself off the air ship, soaring wildly through the air towards Azula, but Sokka's shout overwhelmed hers. "Aang, look out!"

The Avatar swung his arms and new staff, sending the incoming fire blasts ricocheting away, then yanked hard on Appa's reigns, turning the bison back towards the oncoming war balloons they had just escaped. "Aang!" Katara screeched. "What are you doing?"

"Going back for Zuko!" he roared over the sound of the explosions.

"Aang, don't!"

"Hold on!" The Avatar clung to his seat as Appa jerked up and began to charge over the rising balloon.

Aang screamed as loudly as the rest of them as the bison just barely crested the charging war ship after an extreme, vertical accession, and they broke back into the battle area where Zuko was dueling Azula. "Where are they?" Sokka called hoarsely, hanging onto the edge of Appa's saddle as he peered around the mayhem below them.

"There!" Almost at the same moment Suki shouted, a huge burst of fire exploded off the top of a battleship.

"What was that!" Toph cried in alarm as the force from it rocked Appa, blowing her bangs back off her face with a hot gust. The blind girl clung harder to Appa's saddle as she tried to stay on the charging bison. "Can we please fly straight!"

"He's there, Aang!" Suki called again, ignoring Toph's comment as she clawed her way to the front of the saddle. "Falling!" Aang grunted and pulled Appa around as he shouted the prince's name.

And then Katara saw him. As much as she wanted them to leave him, to just fly away so that she didn't have to deal with him any more, so that she wouldn't have to see him, as his body tumbled through the air she knew that she didn't want him to _die._ He was a firebender, and liar, and he had confused and hurt her, but he had saved her before too. She never wanted to see him again, but she didn't want to lose him like that either.

Sokka shouting the prince's name brought her out of her thoughts. As Appa swooped closer, Aang dropped the reigns to divert a haphazard bit of blue flames Azula must have shot at them. Sokka held out his hand towards the fire prince, gabbing tightly to Appa's saddle with his other arm. "Zuko!" her brother shouted a second time.

Finally, Zuko caught sight of them, and his panicked expression softened as he reached out his hand. Sokka stood, snatching for it...

...and missed.

Zuko sailed over them, and Katara moved before she thought. In the seconds before he was gone forever, there was no time for thought. So she reached out and grabbed his hand, and she felt his calloused fingers close tightly around hers, hanging on so tightly she felt her own fingers going slightly numb, and so hard she was faintly aware of the still healing burn marks he had inflicted on himself pressing crudely against her own comparatively soft skin.

Then his weight snapped against her as Appa's speed caught up to them, and she felt herself being pulled back in the saddle. If she reached the end before Zuko landed safely down, she knew she couldn't hold him. A brief, terrifying image of Zuko dangling off the back of the bison, still holding her hand until she was pulled off the saddle by his weight to plummet down the unending cliff face along side him, filled her mind. Desperately, she tried to drag her feet as she skidded across the smooth bottom of the saddle.

But before they fell, a new set of arms flung around her waist, pulling her to a stop. Under the combined weight of Katara and her added anchor, Zuko finally crashed into saddle in front of her as, at the same moment, Aang recovered Appa's reigns and the bison made a sharp move upwards. As the saddle rose beneath them, both scooping up Zuko and knocking both Katara and her supporter to their knees as well, the waterbender gasped in relief. She glanced down towards the quick thinker who'd grabbed her and saw a panting Suki smile back. "Nice catch," the other girl heaved, releasing Katara.

"Yeah," she breathed. "I-"

"You saved me."

The deep words cut through her thoughts, ruining instantly the response she had been on the verge of giving to Suki. Steeling herself, she glanced at the prince, wondering exactly what he was thinking. His tone was always so difficult to read! Not that it mattered. She reminded herself that she didn't care. "I guess that makes us even," she stated instead, as coldly as she could managed.

Not waiting for an answer, she clambered up to the front of the saddle, as far from him as she could get. _I have to keep hating him, _she chanted in her head, as if convincing herself_. I have to. Or I'll just get hurt again…_

But for once, Zuko wasn't interested in Katara's response. Instead, he spun to the back of the bison, and after a moment, Katara realized why.

Azula's body was still twisting wildly as she fell through the air behind them. Zuko's expression became incredibly grim, and his jaw tightened to almost white. Despite how well he controlled his emotions, Katara was shocked to realize that she knew him so well she could tell that he was really torn at the moment. "She's not going to make it," he said, observing Azula's careening fall as if he didn't believe it himself.

Katara knew the tone. It was the same way she had felt when she grabbed his hand, like you knew you weren't supposed to want the person to live, but you couldn't help trying to save them anyway.

Then Azula spun around, kicking blue flames out of her feet, and shot over towards the cliff face, where she stuck her hair piece solidly in the stone and slid to a jarring stop, her hair thrashing wildly around her as she watched their escape. Zuko's face became, if possible, even harder as he watched the almost unbelievable feat. "Of course she did," he growled, before spinning around and collapsing in distempered pile against Appa's back. His eyebrows lowered in typical Zuko brooding. "She always makes it…"

Katara didn't even bother to check him for injuries.


	29. Chapter 29:Inside Her Head

Author's Note:

**Trombe:**

_artsyelric: well, seeing as i'm posting both these chapters simultaneously, i guess we're still waiting for an answer from trombe...  
_

_so, we are so sorry these chapters took so long. trombe's been totally swamped, and i actually have been working! hooray! i really need the cash... anyway, to try and make up for it, i give you two chapters at once! da da da da! two very looong chapters, i might add XDD however, due to trombe's busy schedule, i had to write the fight scenes and just have him check them... hope they weren't too horrible! (ps, that means these weren't double checked by him, so basically, no beta, since we beta each other - forgive me minor mistakes please!)  
_

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 29: Inside Her Head  
**

* * *

"Wow, camping," Aang grinned as the group sat down for dinner around their fire. "It really seems like old times again, doesn't it?"

"Except better," Sokka added, "'cause Suki's here." The group stared at him. "Oh, and Zuko." The belated addition did little to make the comment seem less incriminating.

But nobody seemed to mind. Instead, Zuko actually managed a grin as he swallowed a bite of food. "Well, technically," he suggested tentatively to Aang, "if you really want it to feel like old times, I could… I don't know, chase you around for a while and try and capture you?"

As his friends laughed, Zuko smiled to himself as well. It seemed he was finally getting the hang of jokes – it had taken a while! And sometimes, he still didn't think Sokka was funny…

But as the laughter died down, Zuko noticed that there was one person not joining in the merriment. "Ha, ha," Katara stated dully, her eyes cold in the fire light.

Apparently the fact that she had saved him from falling to his death earlier that day didn't mean she had forgiven him yet.

But before Zuko had a chance to say anything to her, Sokka lifted his glass. "To Zuko," he declared, and all thoughts of Katara fell from the prince's mind. "Who knew after all those times he tried to snuff us out, today he'd be our hero."

"Here here!" Aang, Toph and Suki called, downing their own drinks, and Zuko felt his throat tighten oddly as Aang elbowed him sideways and Toph landed a slightly bearable fist on his shoulder. _This must be what it feels like to have friends all the time, _he realized.

"I'm touched," he admitted, not knowing what else to call how he felt. "I don't deserve this."

But the mood died immediately as Katara stood. "Yeah," she grumbled loudly as she left. "No kidding."

"Katara-" Aang started to reach towards her, but she ignored him as she strode away from the fire, her hair swaying in time with her angry steps.

"What's with her?" Sokka asked.

"I wish I knew." Zuko glanced at Aang who didn't seem to be making a move to follow the girl, then rose and went after Katara – it might finally be his chance to get at her alone and put an end to all this!

"What's with him?" he heard Sokka repeat behind him, though by the silence Zuko left in his wake, it seemed there was still no one with an answer.

It had only been two nights since Katara and Hama had been beneath the newly full moon, and it was only barely waning now, still practically full, so there was plenty of light for Zuko to see. Plus, the island they had landed on was very small, and there was nothing but a thin stretch of land that dropped away into the ocean in the direction Katara had headed, so it was only moments until the prince had cornered her. She noticed him immediately as he came around a large stone, and she turned quickly away, obviously not happy he had followed.

"This isn't fair," he started, not having had time to think of anything to say except exactly how he felt. "What is it with you? Everyone else seems to trust me now – you even trusted me! How did telling the truth ruin that?"

"Oh, everyone trusts you now?" Katara shot back, her voice sharp, as if he was missing something obvious and she now had to painstakingly explain it to him. "I was the first person to trust you, remember? Back in Ba Sing Se."

"So we're back on that again are we?" he demanded, surly that she would bring up things he had thought they were long over.

"Yes we're back on that!" Katara's eyes flashed indignantly. "Or don't you remember what happened? I trusted you then, just like you want me to do again, and you turned around and betrayed me! Betrayed all of us." Despite her rage she was over enunciating each syllable as if to drive her point home further, and it was quite annoying.

Zuko gnashed his teeth together at the beginning of what now felt like an age old argument he had never yet won. "What do you want from me, huh?" he shouted, feeling his own temper rising. "I can't go back to that day and change what I did! All I can do is try to prove to you guys that I'm not like that anymore – but you won't let me, will you?"

"How can I trust you, Zuko, when everything you say to me is a lie?"

"A lie?!" Zuko roared. His temper flared at the accusation, and he didn't even care that he was yelling now. "You're mad at me right now because I told you the truth! Not because I lied."

"The truth?" Katara's voice rose drastically. "What was the truth! That you helped me out back in the Boiling Rock because you believed in what I had to say, because you respected me? Or was it just because you had some stupid crush? You're just like everyone else in the Fire Nation – you'll say whatever you think I want to hear just to make me like you. And then, you'll use it against me, just like Ba Sing Se."

He gaped at her, the ridiculous circle reasoning spinning disconnectedly through his mind. She was making no sense! "Katara, that's just… that's stupid, that's what it is!"

"All right, fine!" she huffed, somehow managing to turn even her own inability to provide a sound argument into his fault. "So maybe it is stupid – but it's how I feel, all right? Just like how you feel about me. I can't help it. Do you think I like feeling angry all the time? Because I don't! I hate it! But every time I'm around you, that's exactly how I feel. Hurt, betrayed, and angry." She said it like he had purposefully caused all of that!

"You think this is any easier on me?!" he countered, deciding immediately that two could play at the blame game. He was just as much a disgruntled teenager as she was, and if she wanted to turn all her angst on him, well then he'd just give it all right back! "I thought for sure my future was set the moment I joined the Avatar!" he ranted. "Help the Avatar, save the world! Simple, clear, and profoundly good. It was supposed to finally make me happy!" He nearly choked over the word. "What a load of crap. I'm as confused as ever and were not even close to winning this war with my father. I left behind a person who meant the world to me to do what I thought was right! And then you... you come along and... ruin things!"

But Katara said nothing. Her eyes watered and she turned away. Zuko stared at her, flabbergasted. Somehow, he got the feeling that matching her blow for blow hadn't been such a good idea after all. She was supposed to rage back - not go away and cry! He mashed his hand against his temple in frustration. How, exactly, had all of this come from him saying he liked her?

Yet, even now, when she was angry and raging, or crying, he still felt that he wanted to help her. He realized, somewhat hopelessly, that he was still in love with her. Sighing, he sucked up his pride. "All right," he tried again. "What can I do to make it up to you?" He just barely refrained from adding a 'this time' to the end of it - he was trying to _mend _this relationship, so he needed a cool head, now if ever.

But, once again, he seemed to have said the wrong thing. "Make it up to me?" Katara squawked, turning back on him. "You think you can just fix everything, Zuko? That if you do something great enough now it will, I don't know, cancel out everything bad that's going on for me lately? Just undo it? Well, you can't just 'make it up to me' every time. That's not how it works."

"Katara," Zuko tried pleading, "I'm not that guy from Ba Sing Se anymore! You were the first person to see me as someone different – _that _is why I wanted to prove myself to you, not because I liked you. But somewhere along the line, I realized that had changed, and… and..." He ran his hands through his hair, trying to refocus his train of thought and explain himself properly. "Well, 'you can't help who you love,' right? Isn't that what your mom always used to say?"

She drew back for a moment, startled into being unsure. "I wouldn't know," she said after a minute, sounding confused. Then her brows dropped and the vicious tone stole back into her voice. "How could I know? She died before she had a chance to tell me that!" The pure sound of her voice almost stung now it was so full of rage.

"Katara," Zuko sighed, still unwilling to quit. He knew he was getting close to the heart of the issue now, just inches away from finding out what was the center of all this rage. "What do you want from me?" he asked, worried that he was digging his own grave, but unwilling to quit when he was so close to figuring out what the hell was wrong with her. He had to be honest now. He had to express himself plainly, and hope she did the same. "Please, tell me and I'll do it. But whether you ever learn to like me or not, I don't want us to be like this! Can't we at least be… friends… again?" He tried to let his voice echo how honestly he wanted just that, and hoped, somehow, she could hear it.

"You really want to know what you could do to fix this?" she demanded, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she strode angrily towards him. He tensed. This was it. "Maybe you could re-conquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King and save all the people we lost there." She leaned in towards him, closer than she had been since the night they kissed, but now her eyes were crazed, and angry, like they had been when she had bloodbent. He suddenly realized there were bags beneath them, and she looked insanely sleep deprived. "Or maybe you could take the scar off Aang's back, or undo all the damage done to Hama's and my people. Or, I know," she drove on, her voice suddenly serious instead of just ranting. "You could bring my mother back."

The last sentence came out bitingly cold, and Katara's jaw clenched angrily as she stared at Zuko. She was so close he could smell her, and still he could think of nothing strong enough to say. This honest statement from her had obviously been the response to his own strong desire to be truthful with her. It was what he'd wanted her to do - to tell him what was really bothering her - but it wasn't something he wanted to hear at all! He hadn't done any of those things, yet once again, they were all being laid at his door, and protesting that it wasn't fair wouldn't change any of it.

Plus, he knew how irrationally painful it was to loose a mother.

After a moment of strained silence, it became apparent that Zuko simply had no answer. Realizing this, Katara's face flushed, and she stomped off past him, heading back towards camp. "Katara, wait!" he called, starting after her, but she didn't turn. "Katara, I'm sorry all of that happened to you, but please just listen to me! I can't try if you won't let me! Katara!" He reached out and caught her wrist, determined not to let things end like this between them.

"Leave me alone!" she shouted, ripping her hand out of his and shoving him hard enough to make him step back.

He stared at her, and then she turned and ran, tears filling her eyes. Aang's tent was the closest to them, and she headed right towards it. "Why," Zuko cursed himself under his breath. "Why is it always him!" he shouted after her.

But Katara disappeared inside the tent without answering, and she was as gone to Zuko as if she were on the other side of the world.

Snorting fire, he kicked at the crisp heads of grass around him, whisking a few right off the tops of their stems. _Or, I know; you could bring my mother back._ The words kept echoing in his head. He had just told her he liked her – wasn't that supposed to make girls _happy?_ Why did things always go so badly for him! She could have just said no, like a normal girl, but instead she had to start hating him again, and go running off to stupid Aang, the almighty Avatar, and all his twelve-year-old stinking glory! Had _Aang _taken lashes for her, to save her father? Was it _Aang _who had comforted her after the bloodbending incident? Did _Aang _know what it was like to lose a mother? No! Zuko did! So why was it _Aang _she was in there crying to, and him who was outside in the cold?

_I'm losing to a child, _he grumbled to himself. _And I don't even know why._

This was so stupid! Katara could make him so angry. In fact, he realized, he probably spent half the time he was with her, arguing. More than half. When he was around her - hell, even when he'd been trying to comfort her! - he somehow always ended up wanting to shout. Despite the fact that he'd been feeling like he had started to get his anger under control lately, when he was around her, he just couldn't control it at all. He felt like he couldn't control any of his emotions, actually. When he was near her, they all spiraled out of hand, amplified to a frightening degree. Soon, he feared, he'd be a crazy as her. Yet still, he wanted to be near her. And he knew he wasn't the only one effected that way.

The knowledge that every time she was around him she felt angry, even when she didn't want to, made it worse. When he was around her, he felt like he was finally doing something good in the world, like he was on the right side of things. Like he wanted her to be proud of him. But when she was acting like this, it seemed more like he had failed, and no amount of toasting from Sokka could change it. With all the anger rolling around inside him, it would be so easy to just be mad back at her, to think that she was just a mean person, who refused to give him a chance. But he knew it wasn't true. Katara was a loving person, the kind of person he had never been around since his own mother died. All this rage and anger, all the hurt she felt, was because of him. It was completely unfair, but since when had rage ever been fair? If he thought about it long enough, Zuko knew that. He had been so full of rage himself before that he had taken it out on everyone, Mai, his uncle, his crew. And none of it ever made him feel any better.

If he really wanted to prove himself to Katara, he would have to make her see that, somehow. Maybe then she would stop acting so infuriatingly hostile towards him.

Groaning, he sat down on a rock, rubbing his temples. How had this all gone so overboard?

_You could bring my mother back…_

And then it clicked in his head. All this anger and frustration Katara felt, it wasn't because he'd kissed her. She was just focusing it on him because she had no where else to vent it. It was exactly like he'd just remembered doing - how he'd acted the same way to Uncle tons of times. If anyone understood anger, Zuko did. Perhaps, for the first time, all those years he spent angry at the world would finally be helpful. Maybe he could use them to help Katara...

He thought back to times he'd been angry, and how he'd managed to get over it. His mind spun through his own memories as he watched Aang's silhouette comforting her. What she needed wasn't comfort, it was closure. He was sure of it. He couldn't bring her mother back, but maybe he could find some way to create an ending to all this in Katara's mind. If she could somehow get over her mother, and everything bloodbending and her time with Hama had stirred up inside her, somehow, maybe, she could get over her renewed hatred of him.

It was worth a try, at least.

His mind made up, he started across the camp for Sokka's tent. If he was going to help her at all, he would need some background information to go on. Fortunately, he had a perfect source for information on Katara at his immediate disposal.

As Zuko strode towards Sokka's tent he let his head cool, taking deep breaths of the chilly, night air. He about to ask... well, what was possibly the only male friend he had at the moment, to relive something very painful. He couldn't help remembering the time he'd overheard Sokka telling his father about that Yue girl. He hoped that, somehow, the warrior would take this better, but, deep inside, Zuko doubted it. He knew that he, himself, was still no where near ready to talk about his own mother's disappearance in his life, and he didn't think Sokka would be any more excited to remember Kaya's death than Zuko was prepared to face... whatever it was that had happened to his mother.

Taking a final, deep breath, Zuko stepped around the rock blocking Sokka's tent from view...

...and bumped right into Suki's turned back.

"Whoops!" she apologized quickly as she pulled her elbow out of his abs. "...wrong tent!" Her hands flew up nervously in front of her, her fingers curling curiously, and somehow Zuko doubted she had gotten the tents confused in any way.

"Sorry," Zuko called her bluff in his most monotonous voice, pulling his hand stiffly away from the spot on his stomach where she'd jabbed him and waving courteously towards the tent. "Did you need to talk to Sokka too?"

From anyone else, this would have been a mockingly sarcastic comment, but obviously Suki didn't pick up on Zuko's subtle form of comedy. Instead she straightened sharply and stopped trying to slip off. She looked as guilty as a child who was caught with their hand in the cookie jar. "Ah... nope!" she chirped, rather too quickly. "Not me!" And before Zuko could say anything else, she waved her arms assuredly between them, and scampered off so fast he thought she might have airbent.

Shrugging, but deciding not to harp on Suki's strange behavior, Zuko turned to the tent. She's already run off, so whatever 'fun' she had Sokka might have been planning wasn't happening anyway... He may well take the opportunity to talk to the water tribe boy before she came back.

But as Zuko pulled back the tent flap and stepped into the candle-lit sleeping quarters he was to share with the warrior, his face dropped in what was unmistakeably, and completely uncharacteristically, a drooping wilt.

What had sent him into this state of unhappy shock was the make-over the two boy's tent had mysteriously undergone during his argument with Katara. Candles blazed all about the floor of the tent, issuing a sweet smell, like smoke and flowers, that Zuko usually associated with Azula's royal bathroom. Rose petals lay strewn about the floor in intentional disarray, and a large bunch of them was hung from the roof, though where Sokka could have gotten them was beyond Zuko's ability to contemplate at this exact moment. In addition, a sheet had been draped across the sides of the tent and the rock that made up one corner of the sleeping quarters - presumably to separate Zuko's side from Sokka's, though that was hardly the purpose it was serving now. It was artfully winkled where it reached the ground, and atop it, legs twined together over his head, lay a pants-less Sokka. As he finished taking in the entirety of it, Zuko was incredibly glad the boy's tunic reached down to his knees.

Sokka rolled his head towards the newcomer, his loose hair covering his face and ears in a manner the prince was not used to seeing, and Zuko noted, almost comically, that the boy had a rose in his mouth, his teeth wrapped around its stem. Frankly, the whole set up was rather comical, not just the rose. Had Zuko been anyone else, he might have been rolling on the floor laughing by now. But, as he was Zuko, he simply stared, jaw slightly agape and face slack. _How does Suki find this attractive in the least?_ he wondered quizzically as he surveyed the ridiculous scene. Sokka was now peering over his shoulder at the second occupant of the tent, though Zuko suspected he had trouble noticing who had entered through all that hair. "Well, helllooooo-"

Sokka's eyes bulged as they finally met Zuko's, and he bit straight through his rose, choking on it pathetically. Zuko snorted in a depressing attempt not to laugh as what Sokka must have assumed was a sultry voice cut off so abruptly. This situation was beyond awkward. What, exactly, was one roommate supposed to do when they walked in on their friend all decked out for his girlfriend? Zuko wished, belatedly, they'd taught him that in all the edict classes he'd had back in the Fire Nation Palace. Lot of good those had done him...

He finally decided to ignore the other boy's... situation... and hope that it could be put silently behind them, as fast as possible. Sokka seemed to read into this approach immediately, and his face showed the same desperate hope to forget this disturbing exchange instantaneously . Despite how his face had blanched, Sokka cleared his throat loudly as he clambered up and into a more natural stance. "Ah, Zuko!" he remarked, scrambling into a seated position. "Yes. Why would I be... expecting anyone different?" As he draped his arm over his leg in a belated attempt at nonchalance, Zuko was incredibly relieved to see he was, after all, wearing shorts.

Zuko was still searching for something normal to say while Sokka attempted to shrug off being walked in on while laying in a pile of roses and candles as perfectly common behavior. However, the affect was completely ruined as the warrior gagged suddenly and coughed up a rose petal. Zuko couldn't do it. He couldn't think of a single acceptable thing to say.

Sokka, however, continued to act as if there was nothing out of the ordinary occurring, and put on a 'down to business' expression as he surveyed his friend. "So, what's on your mind?"

Grasping almost painfully the chance to change the subject, Zuko spat out his reasons for coming without hesitation. Even revealing Katara's unjustified hatred of him or explaining to Sokka how he wanted the other boy to recap the day his mother had died seemed more preferable than addressing the current issue before them. Actually, it almost made it easier to spit out his problems - anything besides talking about the obvious! "Your sister," Zuko answered plainly, folding his legs up beneath him and joining Sokka stiffly on the floor. "She hates me - and I don't know why!" He struggled to return the control to his voice after the sudden outburst. "But... I do care what she thinks of me."

"Nah," Sokka denied offhandedly, waving his hands as if laying out his words more clearly for Zuko. "Look, I know my sister, and... Well, Katara doesn't _hate _anyone. Except maybe some people in the Fire Nation," he added coolly. His face drained suddenly of color as he heard his own words. "No!" he corrected himself sharply before Zuko could even open his mouth. The warrior was now holding his hands up defensively before him and he shook his head like a teacher lecturing a student. "I mean, not people who are good who _used _to be bad," he explained rapidly. "I mean bad people. Fire Nation people who are still bad, who've never been good, and probably won't be - ever!" He grew steadily more frantic throughout the corrective speech until he was leaning towards Zuko insistently, waving his arms in stern rejection of even the possible idea that Katara might hate Zuko.

"Stop!" Zuko interrupted his overly animated friend before the boy could tip over and collapse on him. "Listen. Okay... I know this may seem out of no where, but... I want you to tell me what happened to your mother."

"What?" Sokka asked, his voice suddenly confused. He shank back down to a normal sitting position, and Zuko regretted his request immediately. Obviously Sokka wasn't going to take it well. "Why would you want to know that?"

"Never mind," Zuko stopped himself, standing abruptly. "I shouldn't have asked-"

"No, wait," Sokka insisted, grabbing his arm and pulling the prince back down onto the mat. "I mean it. Why did you ask? Did... Did Katara... say... something?"

"No, not exactly... It's just..." Zuko looked back into his friends serious, though somewhat frightened eyes, and nodded. Even if it was awkward, he should at least finish what he started. "Right, well... Katara mentioned it before when we were in prison together in Ba Sing Se," he explained his reasoning, "and again just now, when she was yelling at me. She just mentioned it - like in passing. But it keeps coming up. I think, somehow... she's connected her anger about that to her anger at me."

"So what?" Sokka asked, and Zuko blinked. "If that's true, she'll eventually get over it. There's not much you can do about something so outlandishly ridiculous. How will my telling you about Mom help change anything?"

"I just... I wanted to understand better," Zuko supplied. "I don't know what she's thinking. I want to know what goes on... inside her head."

"She's a girl," Sokka protested. "Knowing that's impossible."

"Still," the prince insisted, "I want to try. I don't know what else to do. So... will you tell me?"

Sokka glanced away, and for the second time that night Zuko was afraid he had gone too far in asking something so personal. How would he feel if the tables were turned? But, just when he had decided Sokka wasn't going to answer, and it might be better if he just left now before things got worse, the blue-eyed boy spoke. "It's... not a day I like to remember," he admitted quietly, and Zuko settled back down respectfully, ready to listen to whatever his friend had to say.

"We were little... Katara was still learning words." Sokka smiled at the memory. "But already our village had been ransacked so many times we had lost count. You remember those stories Hama told, about them coming and taking away waterbenders?" Zuko nodded, determined to stay with his friend throughout the story, despite whatever personal attachment he might feel to it. "All of that happened before Katara was even born. I barely remember any of it, maybe one raid. All I know is, when my sister was born, there were no other waterbenders left in the village...

"We thought, you know, since all the waterbenders were gone, that we wouldn't have to face raids anymore. Many of the old folks complained about life without benders, but for those of us born to a world without bending, well... we didn't miss it. Life was just natural that way. Until we found out about Katara." Sokka swallowed grimly. "I don't know when, exactly, Mom and Dad figured it out, but when they did, we had a family meeting. Gran-gran decided it was best if Katara not be taught how to bend. If her powers never manifested themselves, then no one would ever come hunting her."

Sokka stopped. After a moment of silence, Zuko could see where this was leading. "It didn't work, did it?"

"I... I don't know," Sokka admitted honestly. "It may have. The raid may have just been coincidence." He shrugged futilely. "We'll probably never know. I mean, it's hard to stop a three-year-old girl with Katara's determination from doing something as natural to her as breathing. But even so, I have no idea of how word of it could have gotten out, and I can't imagine an entire patrol of soldiers mounting an attack like that for just one little girl..."

Zuko frowned unhappily. He could. He had sat in his father's war chambers, and seen how little an entire platoon meant to those men, and how much the simple threat of a single, airbending child did. He didn't doubt at all that if they had heard word of even one waterbender surviving in the water tribe that a fleet would have been dispatched immediately. In fact, he was almost surprised they hadn't just wiped out the entire village to be over it. His fist trembled on the floor beside him. He was so glad now that they hadn't. Where would he be if they had? Where would Aang be? Still in an iceburge? He tried to imagine his world with no Avatar - with no Katara - and found it impossible.

"Anyway," Sokka recalled both their thoughts to the conversation at hand. "Katara and I were having a snowball fight when it happened. She hit me dead on with one, cheeky little brat. So I was packing up as much snow as I could for a gigantic attack, you know, end her stupid giggling once and for all? But then I saw it for the first time. The black snow."

"Black snow?" Zuko asked, hearing the strange, echoing horror in Sokka's tone, as if there was a great distaste in the back of his throat when he spoke which he couldn't rid himself of.

"Black snow," Sokka nodded. "That's what we all called it, at least. You would've seen it, I'd bet. Back when Zhou attacked the Northern Water Tribe. All the soot from your ships mixed with the falling snow."

Zuko's brow furrowed. He remembered that. To him it had simply been a part of life, after all the years he'd spent on the ocean. All Fire Navy ships were coal and steam powered, so soot fell commonly, even in summer. For Zuko, it was just a part of being at sea. To Sokka, it seemed, it had been a sign of something much more sinister.

"We didn't know what it was at the time. It was just a strange phenomenon that intrigued us. But it scared the rest of the village. A frozen panic set over everyone, and the whole world went still, like the calm before a storm. Katara could sense it, I think, and it frightened her. Hell, it frightened me. But her answer was different than mine... She told me she was going to find Mom, and ran off in the direction of our home. Once I was sure she was heading the right way, I... I went looking for my father.

"Many of the warriors had seen the black snow before, and they knew what it meant." Sokka's voice was heavy now. "A Fire Nation raid. I learned of it fast enough. The warriors were arming in complete silence. Well, it was plenty noisy, what with the weapons and the paint and the armor, but no one spoke. And, when I joined them, no one sent me away."

"They let you fight with them?" Zuko asked, surprised. "How old were you?"

Sokka shrugged. "Seven, maybe?"

"Why would they let a seven-year-old go up against seasoned warriors?" the prince demanded.

But Sokka was shaking his head. "I don't know if Dad would have, but... I saw Bato. He didn't stop me." Zuko recalled the name from campfire stories during their hunting trip; from what he had gathered, the man was a friend of Hakoda's.

Still, ignored by this Bato character or not, he was disgruntled with the idea of his Fire Nation soldiers storming an icy beach full of seven year old warriors. Zuko opened his mouth to protest this again, but Sokka shut him down.

"You don't understand," he insisted right over top of the prince. "It's not like everywhere else, where people have standing armies and... and... I don't know! Military. This war, it wiped us out completely, Zuko! I was the only boy left in the village between the ages of two and twenty! Our entire town consisted of one waterbender, five or six infants, two toddlers - being Katara and myself - and maybe ten families, most of whom had already lost sons, daughters, fathers or mothers to the waterbender raids. We were beyond the ability to protect ourselves against attacks from your men. It wasn't a matter of arming up for war, it was a question of fighting for our very lives! I was just as likely to die sitting at home as I was charging a Fire Nation soldier. When all you have left is your family, you do whatever you can to protect them - even if it means going out fighting! I would have been proud to die that day, if it would have meant... she..." But Sokka choked up a bit and didn't continue.

Zuko exhaled thickly. He couldn't imagine a situation like that. He had seen their small town himself, but he could only assume at the time that there must have been more to it, neighboring towns, villagers that had hidden. It was as impossible to picture growing up in such a small, terrified world as it would have been for him to imagine growing up in Aang's air temple, where rage was practically a sin. But for Sokka, and for Katara, this had been very real.

And Zuko needed to understand it if he was going to be any help to Katara.

"I'm sorry," he told Sokka firmly, wanting to say something else, but unsure of what.

But Sokka waved it off, seeming to have regained his composure somewhat in the few moments of quiet. "The ships smashed through the ice. I saw them coming. I couldn't keep up with most of the other warriors during the charge, I was just too small, but I was close enough to see it. They came right up to the village, exactly like your ship did last winter, just smashing through everything until finally wedging in the ice and stopping to pour Fire Nation soldiers like fire-ants from a hive." Zuko remembered Sokka's solo form standing in defense of his village so long ago and wondered dimly just how much fear and anger his arrival had caused the painted boy.

"I watched most of the battle from a distance," Sokka revealed. "I wanted to fight, but I had never seen a real war before, and I was scared. I was seven," he added, his voice taking on a false bit of merriment. "Can you blame me?" Zuko shook his head slightly, and after a moment, Sokka let his attempt at a joke die out on his humorless audience. "The blue painted faces I knew so well collided with the red masks, and fought ferociously. We were badly outnumbered, but somehow we managed to drive them off. Honestly, each water tribe warrior was worth ten Fire Nation soldiers, benders or not. When you are fighting to protect your home, you fight with a different intensity than you do as a raider. I think that made the difference."

"Even so," Zuko muttered, his voice weighing the options.

"Yeah, even so..." Sokka took a deep breath before continuing. "Even so, we were going to lose, simply in terms of sheer numbers. Had the fight gone on any longer, we would have surely been beaten. But, as it was, we didn't lose a single warrior."

"What?"

Sokka nodded proudly. "Every man survived that day. But it wasn't because of our skill, I don't think," he added in retrospect. "As quickly as they came... they just left. I'd only managed to clout one fallen firebender over the head and snatch up a fallen boomerang before the ships were leaving. I'd be surprised if they had been there more than five minutes."

Sokka glanced away from Zuko, his voice suddenly bitter. "I was so relieved when it was over. But... that's because I didn't know yet what had happened." His head dropped, and he hugged his knees to himself, somehow managing to look much smaller than Zuko had ever seen him before. "I didn't know we had lost our mother."

"How did you find out?" The golden eyes bore down on his friend, unsure how to go about comforting someone, but determined to get something useful out of the story so as not to waste his friend's efforts in reciting it. "About your mom, I mean. Did you... see..."

But Sokka was shaking his head. "Dad told me. When I came back with the other men, proud for protecting our loved ones from the strange, short-lived raid, I found out. Apparently..." Sokka looked up at Zuko, determinedly willing himself to go on. "Apparently, Katara saw though. I heard she went to get Dad, looking for help, but they... they must have gotten back too late. I don't know what they saw, what... she saw...

"Dad was never really the same again." Sokka had looked away. "It was shortly after that when he organized all the men into a battle fleet and left. He was angry and hurt, and I heard him arguing with Gran-gran a time or two before he left. I... I wanted to go with him, but I was left behind, the only 'man' in the town, not even eight yet. It kind of seems like a cruel joke now, but... that's just how things were. Since then Dad's been traveling all over the world, hell bent on revenge, along side the rest of our men. I guess they just had enough, and... Well, you've seen him lately," Sokka added, pushing the sheet with his toes in a distracted manner. "He's much better. I still see that shadow of Mom in his eyes every now and again, but... he's really trying, you know? To make up for everything. Supporting me on the invasion, and taking the fall for me when it flopped... Even that camping trip. I can tell he wants to be a part of our lives again now, and I think Katara's finally forgiven him for leaving."

"She blamed him?" Zuko asked, a bit surprised - he had somehow felt Katara would be above things like blaming her father.

"Not... exactly." Sokka rubbed his chin as he tried to put a finger on it. "It wasn't that she blamed him. More like... I don't think she ever really learned to depend on him. Actually, she barely depends on me. She's so self sufficient, I hardly know when she's in trouble, and usually when she is it's too dangerous to try and help her - she'll take your head right off!" Sokka waved his arms crazily, a bit of his humor sparking up again, and Zuko was surprised to feel himself chuckle briefly. "Better to just let her work through things on her own," he added, like a hidden piece of advice to Zuko. "She can handle herself. And she'll come to me afterward, when she's ready."

Zuko ignored the veiled suggestion to leave Katara to her own devices and focused instead on Sokka story. He was still looking for that one hint, the clue he would need to bring Katara the end he'd concluded she needed. Something about Sokka's memory must give him a lead to finding closure for the waterbender that didn't involve trying to hate him to death.

He rubbed his temple as he ran through Sokka's tale in his mind again. "Wait!" he stopped suddenly, remembering how vividly Sokka had described the ships when they breached the ice. "Can you remember any details about the soldiers who raided your village? Like... what the lead ship looked like?" It was a shot in the dark, but it was worth it.

Sokka gaped at Zuko, and he realized he wasn't really being that sympathetic. But he had a purpose for talking to Sokka tonight, and he knew he needed to stay focused on it if any of this was going to be worth anything. "I..." Sokka scrunched up his face, trying to remember any details he might of left out or blocked. "Yeah... The lead ship..." He seemed to be looking through a deep fog. Then his face brightened and he nodded to himself. "Sea-ravens," he stated, and Zuko raised an eyebrow. Sokka rolled his eyes and elaborated. "The main ship had flags with sea-ravens on them."

"The symbol of the Southern Raiders..." Zuko glanced back at his friend, somewhat excited. "Thanks, Sokka. That helps."

"Nooo problem," Sokka insisted, drawing out the world as he seemed to come instantly out of his depression. He reached over and grabbed Zuko around the shoulders and started to shove him roughly out of the tent. "Thanks for... stoppin' by!" he added, pulling the tent flap open and pushing the prince out.

"Ah... you do realize I sleep here, right?" Zuko asked as his friend continued to prod him.

"Not tonight you don't," Sokka rejected him firmly. "Go sleep with Aang."

Zuko stopped resisting and let himself be forced out of the tent, the flap falling closed behind him. He sighed and stretched his shoulder briefly, rolling it to get the strain of the evening (and the pushing) out before turning to start to leave. Still just seconds after the tent flap had dropped behind him, and only after he'd taken two halting steps away from it, Sokka's head poked back out the slit stealthily. "Suki!"

His eyes widened _again _as he realized he apparently hadn't been stealthy enough. The ejected Zuko was still just feet from the entrance, and eying him oddly. Sokka tried to pull it off as a whistle, but Zuko shot him an angry glance. "I'm not stupid you know," he growled at the warrior.

"Phhft!" Sokka blew his hair out of his face in disbelief. "I know that. You think _I _don't know that, Zuko?"

The prince shook his head. "Your girlfriend's behind that rock," he gestured to the shadow that leaped backwards with a slightly undignified squawk. "I think I'll be out all night after all," he added. "Have a good sleep."

He stretched as he walked away, distinctly aware of Sokka's gaze following his back, but he didn't care. He doubted, after the conversation he'd just put Sokka through, there would be much of the hanky-panky the boy had originally planned for the night. He knew that personally he wouldn't be up for much after such a mood-dampening ordeal. But having Suki around would be a comfort for the warrior, to be sure, and Zuko didn't begrudge his friend a girlfriend, even if his own love life was particularly twisted at the moment. _Yeah, one girlfriend in jail for saving me, and the girl I'm trying to cheat on her with despises me completely and is in love with a twelve year old..._

He glanced at Aang's tent as he thought his over the top summary. The light was still on and he could see Aang moving around. Katara didn't seem to be in there, but he still didn't think going over and asking the Avatar if he could share the tent for the night would be a wise idea at the moment. Aang was mild-tempered to put it nicely, but he was quite sure Katara had been complaining about him, and the last thing he needed was a lecture from the miniature monk.

Deciding he still had plenty to work through on his own, he sat up outside of Katara's tent, waiting diligently for the moment she would open it and appear, nearly bursting with the news that he knew who had killed her mother. It wasn't as good as being able to bring her back, certainly, but it was a real, tangible way to focus her frustration, and, even better, it was something besides him for her to hate.

He pondered, for a moment, how odd it was to be sitting outside the tent of the girl he was crushing on, waiting anxiously to tell her news about her mother's murderer. Not exactly the most romantic of morning gifts, but upon reflecting on his previous romantic attempts (mainly failed attempts, though whether that was Mai's fault or his was still undetermined) he decided it was still better than covering himself in petals and trying to swallow a rose whole, like some people did. Besides, he wasn't doing this just because he had a crush on her. He was doing this because... because even fatherless girls needed someone to depend on, or they wound up insane and emotionless like Azula.

At the very least, he wanted to be there for Katara to depend on. He wanted to be her friend again. This, he was sure, was going to help.

Ready to face her again, he sat though the night, thinking desperately of the girl within the tent before him.


	30. Chapter 30:A Line Drawn

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: aang is so cute in this chapter! he TOTALLY is a guru goodie-goodie. but, honestly, how can you hate the little guy? i feel so bad for the kid, taking his crush away... oh well! on to a zutara-y southern raider's search and destroy mission!  
_

**Trombe:Hmmm... For some reason I'm not thoroughly satisfied with this chapter but...oh well. And yes folks, I am that busy so if the updates are unusual bare with it. Its not like its summer and I've got Loads of time to kill.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 30: A Line Drawn  
**

* * *

Katara had spent a good part of the evening talking to Aang, but the fact was, she knew her frustration with Zuko was completely irrational, if not unfounded. When it came right down to it, she just didn't think Aang understood the turmoil her mind was in right now. It seemed like everything about the world was turning bad so fast she couldn't get a grip on it. Nearly all she cared about had fallen to the Fire Nation, and the only thing they got in return was Zuko's most unwanted aid. Sozin's Comet was approaching, and at the rate they were going, when it came, she would lose Aang too. The fact was, Katara was fighter, with nothing to fight against, and she was angry at herself.

That night's sleep had been dream plagued as well, and so she was still tired when she woke the next day. But she slipped past Toph (who looked to have no intention of waking up any time soon) and pushed open the front of her tent, stepping out into the island sunlight which was always so bright in the Fire Nation. It was a new day – maybe she could at least make it through this one without a certain someone preoccupying her thoughts.

But as the tent flap swung shut behind her, she caught sight of the exact thing she didn't want to see. Seated on a rock in front of her tent, his body drooped as if he might have fallen asleep, was Zuko.

Not caring what condition the annoying prince was in, she crossed her arms stuffily. _Can't he just leave me alone, for once? I _don't _like him, and I don't want to! I just don't want to feel angry any more. _He looked up as her shadow fell over him, and she could see bags under his eyes almost the size her own had grown to. "You look terrible," she stated, unhappily.

"I waited out here all night," he reported, rising.

_As if telling me that would make me like him more. As if staying up all night could 'make-up' for everything else wrong with us right now._

"What do you want?" she asked, walking past him to grab her hair brush from her bag.

And then he said something she never expected to hear. "I know who killed your mother." Her grip on her hair tightened so much it hurt, and she had to let it go. But Zuko wasn't done. "And I'm going to help you find them."

At first, she couldn't really process it. When she had said all that the night before, she had just been lashing out, been angry. And the dreams... well, the dreams were enough to make anyone crazy.

As her mind wrapped completely around what the firebender had just said, she realized she did want to find them. She wanted to know who had been responsible for her mother's death. She very much wanted to look into their eyes, and condemn them. Most especially, she wanted the man she knew had killed her mother. Him she wanted to find with every fiber of her being. But another part of Katara screamed that this was Zuko, and so it had to be another trick. It was all coming at her so fast. Surely he was just trying to make things up to her again? Possibly this was just a new ploy to make her like him somehow... and now he thought this would work, just like he thought saving her dad or teaching Aang would.

On the one hand, she was almost trembling with the desire - no, the need - to hunt down her mother's killer. But on the other, she was frightened of having to follow Zuko into something so potentially dangerous, and personal.

But right now, with all her frustration and rage, and her mother's death so prevalent in her mind... it was too tantalizing. She had to go.

"Okay," she agreed. "Talk."

* * *

"What are you doing, Sokka?" Aang asked skeptically as the warrior bent precisely over the flowers he was attempting to force together.

"Making Suki a present," he reported rather glumly. "Ah, stupid flowers! Isn't this how Choi and those other nomads taught you to do it?"

Aang sighed as he corrected Sokka's weaving, getting the flowered necklace started before turning back to Appa. "Morning buddy," he grinned, petting the bison. "You eat yet?"

"Aang!"

The Avatar turned quickly at the intense tone in Katara's voice, and found the girl he admired so striding purposefully towards him, a grim faced Zuko a few steps behind. He sighed, assuming they were fighting again, and started to say something.

But Katara cut him off, steel in her normally soft voice. "I need to borrow Appa."

"Why?" he wondered, realizing that the two opposing benders weren't fighting, but somehow facing him together. Their intensity instantly made him feel left out. There was definitely something happening that he wasn't in on, and when it involved Katara, that made him edgy. "Is it your turn to take another field trip with Zuko?" he asked, his tone teasing, but hopeful too.

"Yes," Katara growled back with no hint of mirth. "It is."

"Oh." Apparently she wasn't going to let him change the mood. "But what about my firebending? Zuko can't keep running off with you and Sokka – why don't I come too?"

Katara glanced at Zuko, who stared steadily back, and Aang was shocked to find they were debating whether he was allowed to come or not between the two of them. Right over his head, like he was a child. "I don't think that's a good idea, Aang," Katara said firmly, and behind her, Zuko nodded, emphasizing their united front.

"Wait, what's going on? Where are you going that I can't come?" he asked, suddenly suspicious.

"We're going to find the man who took my mother from me."

Sokka glanced up as his sister's declaration hung in the air. "What?" he echoed, getting to his feet. "Katara, what did you say?"

She stared at her brother, then glanced away, as if to say he'd heard her the first time. Aang glanced between them. "Why now?" he asked. "There's so much else to be doing… Why now?"

"Sokka told me what happened," Zuko spoke up for the first time. "I know who did it, and I know how to find him. What else is there?"

"Um… Plenty!" Aang reminded them. "We have a comet coming, and a war on our hands, and… and… and what exactly do you think this will accomplish anyway? You're going to go out and hunt down this… man… and then what, Katara? Even if you find him, it's not going to change anything. You know that."

Katara stared at him for a minute, and her expression showed hesitation. Just when he thought he might have gotten through, her face hardened again. "Tsch," she blew air harshly through her teeth. "I knew _you _wouldn't understand."

Aang's jaw dropped slightly at that, but Katara turned and started to walk away. Anger boiled up in the Avatar, and he quickly tried to master it. _She _thought _he _didn't understand her? And what, Zuko did? Aang shook his head. "Wait, stop!" She stopped, but didn't turn to face him, so he addressed himself to her back, reminding himself to be patient. "I do understand, okay? You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. You want someone to blame, something physical that you can do to release all that frustration."

"Don't pretend like you know what it's like to lose a mother," Katara growled, shaking her hair.

"Maybe not a mother," Aang agreed, "but how do you think I felt when the sandbenders stole Appa, the last of my family? And how do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people? Monk Gyatso – all of them! But taking out your own anger on someone else isn't going to help! It will just make you more angry."

"She needs this," Zuko interrupted. "This is about getting closure, and justice."

"No, I don't think so," Aang denied heatedly. He could be patient with Katara, endlessly if necessary, but the fact that Zuko was pushing her into this was just riling him up. "I think it's about getting revenge! And it's about you trying to convince her it's somebody else's fault instead of yours!"

"Well, it's not my fault!" Zuko shouted at the boy.

"Of course it isn't," Aang conceded. "But that doesn't make what you're trying to do right. You have to think about Katara, not just yourself!"

"I _am _thinking about Katara! Who do you think I'm doing this for?"

"Fine," Katara interrupted, and her words cut off the boy's argument. "Maybe it is about revenge. But maybe… Maybe that's what I need. And maybe that's what _he _deserves…"

"Katara!" Aang rebuked. "Listen to yourself! You don't sound like the girl I spent the last year with at all. You sound like… Jet."

"Jet?" Zuko asked.

But Katara didn't give anyone a chance to explain – in fact, she acted as if she hadn't heard Zuko at all. "It's not the same," she insisted. "Jet attacked the innocent. This man… this _murderer…_ he's a monster! And he deserves anything he gets!"

Aang paled slightly under the ferocity of Katara's onslaught, but he wasn't alone in his appeal. Sokka reached for his sister's shoulder. "Katara, she was my mother too, but… I think Aang might be right. This won't change anything. I don't think you should do this-"

"Then you didn't love her the way I did!" Katara shouted, pushing Sokka's hand off her shoulder.

Sokka looked as if he had been hit far harder than Katara slapping his hand away. The sting of her words were obviously unjustified by her brother's reaction. "Katara…"

But for once, Katara actually didn't seem to care that her sibling was hurt. She just turned away angrily. Aang shook his head. "The monks used to say that revenge is like a two-headed rat-viper. While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself."

"That's cute," Zuko mocked. "But this isn't air temple preschool. It's the real world, where not everything can be solved with a circle of friendship and hugs."

Aang glared angrily at Zuko for putting off his ideals so simply. Just because the Fire Prince was five years older didn't mean that Aang was a child. The Avatar snorted and turned to Katara instead. "Please, at least think about this for a while," he pleaded. "I don't want you to do something rash and then regret it for the rest of your life."

"I already thought about it," Katara denied snappishly. "Now that I know he's out there, now that I know we can find him, I feel like I have no choice."

"Katara," Aang reminded, "you do have a choice. You always have a choice."

"Just like I had a 'choice' about becoming a bloodbender?" Katara demanded. "Or how I had a 'choice' about losing my family?"

"You do have a choice!" Aang insisted. "How you use it, how you react to it! You chose to save your friends by becoming a bloodbender, and you _chose _to support your brother and village after you lost your mother. Those were your choices! They're what make you you. You can't let someone else chose for you," he added, with a glare at Zuko.

"What else can I do?" Katara practically screamed at him. "I can't do nothing! What other choice is there?"

"...Forgiveness."

But the word was not well received. Katara scoffed, and Zuko shifted angrily. "That's the same as doing nothing!" he told the Avatar aggressively.

"Ah, no it's not," Aang explained, ticked at the attitude Zuko suddenly had with him. This whole time he had been Zuko's main supporter, and now the boy was fed up with the prince as well. "It's easy to do nothing, but it's hard to forgive."

"More empty words, Avatar?" the firebender asked. "Tell me, how are those pretty metaphors supposed to help her feel better? Will they erase someone's pain, or stop a war? No! Action will. And if I have a choice, I would choose to act."

"But this isn't _your _choice!" Aang cut him off. "This is about Katara; or did you forget that?"

Zuko's jaw clenched, and somehow Aang felt like this was more about Katara than even he knew yet. He felt like it was a battle between himself and the prince, and Katara was at the heart of it. But this was _Katara. _If she couldn't see what was right, no one could. She was always the one who reminded him what was good. She always made the best possible choice! So this time too, Aang just knew she would understand. "Katara, I know running off like this may feel rewarding right now, but it won't be. Believe me. What you need to do isn't get revenge. You need to forgive them, even if it's hard."

"It's not just hard, Aang," Katara whispered darkly. "It's impossible."

Then she turned and walked out on her brother and friend with the same, angry, determined stride she had approached, and Aang knew this wasn't over. Zuko glared at the Avatar for a moment, then followed her, his own serious expression adding weight to the gloom that formed around the waterbender. Aang sighed and glanced at Sokka. In those few minutes, the world seemed to have twisted around him, and Aang still wasn't sure where he had ended up standing, but apparently it was on the opposite side of a line both Katara and Zuko had drawn together.

"At least they're… getting along now," Sokka suggested hopefully. "I guess…"

"Is that what you think this was about?"

"I dunno," Sokka shrugged. Then he glanced at Aang. "You know, you're pretty wise for a kid."

"Thanks, Sokka," Aang accepted the compliment wearily.

"Usually it's annoying, but right now I'm just impressed."

"I appreciate that," Aang groaned, trying to see the best in the warrior's words. But he remembered the harsh way Katara had spoken to her brother as well, and Aang softened up a bit. "You don't… wanna go after them too, do you?" Aang asked the warrior.

"Naw," Sokka declined. "I'm much more mature than my baby sister. Besides, who needs a field trip with Zuko when Suki's here in camp! Oh, Suki!" he called, prancing off to find his girlfriend in an extreme immature manner that was just so Sokka. "Come look what I made you!"

Aang sighed. _At least he's not harping on Katara's rude comment…_

The airbender had no idea where all this anger was driving them to, but he couldn't help wondering what might be next.

* * *

Lunch was eaten in almost complete quiet. Suki seemed incredibly aware of the oppressive temperament that had befallen the camp, and the rift between Sokka and Aang, Katara and Zuko, became apparent quickly. Katara and Zuko didn't seemed to have given up on their plan to hunt the Southern Raiders in the slightest. Instead, Zuko had produced maps from Sokka's pack (which Sokka had tried to protest, but had lost in a shouting match to Katara) and poured over them throughout the entire meal. Katara simply sat brooding, needing nothing to excuse her own silence. Her dark thoughts, which had been building for days, seemed to be enough.

Sokka noted Aang had prepared their lunch, because it became apparent that all the food Katara made earlier that day had gone straight back to her tent and been hidden away, none of it reappearing at lunch. But when a grumpy Toph finally emerged from her tent, demanding feeding, Aang had apparently decided the last thing he needed was a fight between the earthbender and waterbender, and both he and Sokka were sure Katara was just itching for a fight. So now he served lunch indiscriminately to both parties, though neither Katara nor Zuko responded when the Avatar dished out their meal.

After the stressful silence Aang left Suki to do the cleaning and went with Toph to practice earthbending. Sokka wished he had such a convenient excuse to ditch out on the two angry plotters, but, even more, he wished he could somehow talk sense into one of them. And, knowing his sister, he figured his best bet was Zuko. So he actually refused Suki's suggestion to find somewhere more private, and settled down to wait for one of the two opposing benders to tire of the other's presence. With all they fought, he was sure it was bound to happen sooner or later.

Sure enough, he didn't have to wait long. Eventually, when Katara saw that there was no reason to actually be near Zuko any more, as Aang had gone off to practice and Sokka had retreated a ways, she stood and headed for her own tent. The warrior saw Zuko start to say something, but, as expected, Katara coolly ignored the prince and disappeared behind the tent screen. Grumbling to himself, Zuko gathered his pillaged maps and went off towards the tent he and Sokka shared - well, shared whenever Sokka was ostracizing the prince from it in favor of a cuddle with his favorite Kyoshi Warrior.

Seizing his chance, Sokka followed after, slipping quietly past his sister's tent, and pausing for a second before entering his own to prepare his thoughts. Zuko glanced up as Sokka stepped in, but when he saw who it was, he turned his attention back to his maps discontentedly. Sokka felt his own anger bubble. If Zuko and Katara hadn't responded to Aang's reasoning, then Sokka wasn't about to try the same tactic. They wanted to be angry and misunderstood? Fine, so be it. He had plenty to be angry about. It was his mother they were all worked up about too!

"Oh, don't give me that, Zuko," he glowered down at the prince's attitude. "I told you everything I did last night because I thought you wanted to help Katara, not so that you could start ignoring me, and... and... making stupid alliances!"

"I _am _trying to help her," Zuko protested nonchalantly. "You just don't understand it."

"I don't!?" Sokka demanded. "How do I not understand it? Because _I _haven't lost a mother? Because _I've _never felt rage? Because _I've _never failed to protect someone I loved?"

"Stop it, Sokka," Zuko practically shouted. "This isn't about who's got the worst life."

"Yeah, because if it was, you'd win hands down, right, Fire Prince Zuko?" Sokka's jaw locked at he leaned towards Zuko aggressively, and he saw the prince go white for a moment.

"You have no idea." Zuko's face was completely unreadable.

After a moment, the warrior backed down, crossing his arms and taking a seat. "Well, anyway... Look, I'm not here to fight with you." Zuko raised his eyebrow at Sokka in disbelief. "No, really. Actually, I do understand, all of it, exactly how my sister's feeling right now. The truth is, I felt the same way for years. But eventually, with Katara's help, I got over it. Dad took longer. Like I told you last night, he's been running around all this time killing every firebender he can get his hands on. But I think, finally, he's managed to move on as well."

"What's your point?" Zuko asked dully.

"Just that... Katara never did any of that. She never... you know, faced up to this, or managed to get past it. Mom's death is just... hanging over her, unresolved. And honestly, while I don't approve of this 'mission' you two are planning, I do understand."

"Good," Zuko muttered. "Then you won't mind leaving me alone to work."

"The problem is," Sokka drove on. "I don't think _you _understand. At least, not everything," he added quickly as Zuko glared up at him. "Look, I didn't see what happened to Mom, I just found out later, from Dad and Katara."

"Hm... I was listening to you last night, you know," Zuko pointed out, causing Sokka to bristle slightly.

But the warrior forced his annoyance down. "Fine, I'll get straight to the point. I didn't see it, I wasn't there. I don't have a face associated with the attack to hate, or a bloody image of my mother to try and cope with. But Katara does! I don't know what happened to your mom or whatever, but Katara... she lived it. She was there for the whole thing. And... I don't think Katara _knows _how to face it."

Zuko sat up, crossing his own legs, finally listening to Sokka for real. "How so?"

"Right," Sokka nodded to himself, knowing that this could be his only chance to express what he needed to. He had to make himself clear to Zuko. "Basically, Katara's been a mother, ever since ours died. She takes care of everyone, so she's had to become someone very strong. That's why she has troubles admitting she has a problem she can't fix."

"I've noticed."

"When we first met up with Dad again, Katara treated him just the same way she's treating you now. I don't know why or what Hama said that made her associate Mom with you, or get mad at you again, and frankly, I don't want to. Zuko, you're my friend, so I believe that you're trying to do what's best for Katara. But... She doesn't take help well. Advice, yes. That's why she and Aang get on so well. But help, eh... not so good."

"Speaking from personal experience?" Zuko's eyebrow quirked curiously.

"Y-e-s," Sokka agreed, drawing out the word exasperatedly. "Katara _never_ asks me for _anything_. She just tells me stuff, like, 'I'm going to go save Aang from that crazy firebender' or 'this town needs my help and I won't abandon them' or 'your instincts are stupid, Sokka, so I'm just going to keep being friends with a murdering psychopath who wants to destroy an entire town by flood!' Ah!"

Zuko was obviously unimpressed by his impersonation. "Your point?"

"Oh, yeah." Sokka pulled himself back on track. "My point is, she doesn't ask for help. She just decides she'd going to do something, and then you can either go along with her or not. There's not much room for change in that. Dad doesn't always follow her plans, like how he just went off to fight and left her. Which is why she has so much trouble depending on people, I think. Anyway, I know you're trying to help her, so I just wanted you to know that."

"So, you're saying, she probably sees me as undependable, like your father?"

"Yup," Sokka surmised. "That's basically it."

"...Thanks."

"Anytime."

The conversation having reached this abrupt halt, Sokka started to leave. But before he got very far Zuko spoke again. "So... if you always just go along with her plans, why aren't you now?"

Sokka paused. "I'm over Mom. It took a long time, but I am. Besides," he added, with his infamous stupid grin. "Look's like she's dragging you along instead!" For some reason, Zuko didn't look as displeased by that comment as Sokka had expected him to. But then the boy remembered the other thing he was supposed to say. "Oh yeah. Since she's taking you, instead of me, that means you better take care of her."

"I thought she didn't take kindly to help?"

"No, she doesn't," Sokka agreed. "But that doesn't mean she doesn't need it. You better look after her for me, got it?"

His tone said that this wasn't goofy, joking Sokka anymore. This was a protective older brother speaking now. Zuko seemed to register that the mirth had left his friend, because his face turned grim as he nodded.

"It's a man's promise then," Sokka insisted, putting up his hand.

Zuko only hesitated a second before taking it. "A man's promise," he agreed. "She'll be safe with me."

* * *

"So..." Toph casually started, strolling by a still brooding Katara as she was about to leave their tent.

"What?" The waterbender was as irritable as before.

"You still planning on going through with this?"

Katara pretended that she never heard the young earthbender.

"I'm not stupid, you know. I know everything you're planning with Zuko tonight," Toph scoffed under her voice while she raised up a rock to sit on.

"If you know then you also know you can't stop me." Katara's eyes squinted slightly in an irritated gesture.

"Who says I was going to?" The glass-eyed girl yawned casually as she stretched her arms upwards, which left Katara confused.

"Then why even bring it up?"

The smaller girl shrugged in her stone chair. "All this talk of justice and such... it's just a waste of words. I know what this really is all about. When it comes down to it... it's all about getting even." The way Toph's blind eyes seem to stare into Katara's body made the weight of her words heavy and ominous.

Katara stood in silence as she continued to watch her companion. Toph was never one to coat her words. Straightforward and blunt, the young girl was practically a seer, always seeing into the heart of the matter.

"But if you think about it carefully," she continued knowingly, "is this what you really want, Katara? For all your talk of righteousness and doing the right thing, you probably already know the consequences of what your getting yourself into. "

A brief paused was in the air before Katara whispered, "I want this more then you'll ever know. That monster has to pay, for everything."

A slight twitch came up on Toph's face. She already know her friend's answer from the beginning, but she still had to hear it from the source herself. Even if it wasn't the answer she had hoped for.

"...You're an idiot, Sugar Queen. Did you know that?"

Katara started to respond, but was cut off by the sound of the earthen chair demolishing itself. When she looked up, all she saw was the back of her friend, who was continuing on her merry way.

She couldn't see the disappointed look on the tiny earthbender's face.

_Before you look at Zuko you should look at yourself Katara, _Toph thought a bit sadly, knowing the waterbender too well to believe any true relief would come from this fool's mission.

_When you fight with monsters, you should be careful that you yourself don't become one.  
_

* * *

As soon as darkness fell, Zuko heard a knocking on the stone part of his and Sokka's tent, and moment's later Katara's head popped in. "Zuko, let's go."

He felt his heart pound. He had been sure the Avatar's little pep talk would convince the aptly nick-named 'Sugar-Queen' Katara to snap out of it and stay home, adding her fight with Aang to the list of grievances she would lay at his feet. But apparently he had been underestimating Katara's brooding ability. While he doubted she had told anyone else he'd kissed her, he was quite sure that Aang had become aware of the rising tension between the two of them and Katara, and he didn't know what was going to happen next. Especially since, for the moment, whatever her reasons, Katara seemed to have chosen Zuko. Now he would have a whole trip with her to prove that he wasn't the one responsible for all the bad in her life – a whole trip to make her trust him again.

And he wouldn't waste a minute.

As soon as she called his name, Zuko snatched up the bag he had already packed, just in case, and stood. He had dressed in black right after dinner, hoping, and when he emerged from the tent, he saw she was dressed the same. As she pulled her hair back into a thick ponytail at the nape of her neck, he realized this gave her a whole new look. Colorless clothes, thick, tightly controlled hair, and a vengeful look in her eye… He would have hardly believed this was the same girl he had met on the shores of the South Pole if not for her dazzling blue eyes. Only they were the same, still filled with determination and power.

Of course, he wondered if anyone he'd met back then would recognize him either now. Zuko, the betrayer, in league with the Avatar, falling for a waterbender… He almost didn't believe it himself.

But as Zuko made to join Katara beside Appa, they were interrupted by the twelve-year-old master of holiness a second time. "So you were just going to take Appa anyway?" Aang demanded as he and Sokka jumped over they rock they had obviously been laying in wait behind.

Despite Sokka's talk with Zuko earlier, it seemed that he was still (at least casually) staying on Aang's side of the fight. The prince could only assume this was for Katara's sake.

But the effect was lost, because Katara didn't even turn towards them, just finished tying her hair and then spoke in an emotionless voice. "Yes."

Aang rolled his eyes at her short, and rather unsatisfactory answer, then sighed. "It's okay, because I forgive you," he stated divinely. He opened his eyes again to peek at her. "That give you any ideas?" he asked with an overly bright tone.

But Katara spun on him angrily. "Don't try to stop us!" she warned him.

"I wasn't planning to," Aang admitted heavily. It was now apparent to all of them that he had lost the battle. Still, Aang being Aang, he faced the defeat graciously, and with a word of sovereign advice. "I can see now that this is a journey you believe you need to take. You need to face this man. And I understand." Katara nodded stiffly, and grabbed Appa's horn, starting to climb up, but the Avatar wasn't finished. "But when you do," he cautioned. "Please, don't choose revenge. Let your anger out, and then let it go. Forgive him, Katara. Please, try."

Zuko pulled the pack shut, standing so that his height blocked Aang's view of the unresponsive Katara. "Okay," the prince rolled his eyes. "We'll be sure to do that Guru Goody-Goody. Now, practice your firebending like a good Avatar while we're gone, and we'll be back in a few days. And don't worry," the prince boasted, half to get under Aang's skin, and half to remind Sokka he remembered their deal, "I'll take care of her."

Aang's eyes narrowed maliciously, the first time Zuko had seen that look from the kid. "You don't even know what you're talking about," he told Zuko firmly.

When Zuko didn't answer, Aang snorted and walked around him, turning his eyes back up towards Katara. "Whatever happens," he told her, "come back safe?" _Come back to me, he means,_ Zuko realized, climbing up Appa's back.

"Thanks for understanding, Aang," Katara answered instead, flicking the reigns the moment Zuko was in the saddle. "Yip yip."

"So, can I borrow Momo for a week?" Zuko heard Sokka ask as they sailed off.

"Why do you need Momo?" Aang demanded, loud enough to be heard.

But Sokka just shrugged, and then his and Aang's conversation was lost to Zuko. _Please let this trip go well! _he begged whatever spirits were out there as he watched Katara's determined back. _I don't think I'll live through her hating me much longer…_


	31. Chapter 31:Breaking and Entering

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: let the raid begin! i hope i did okay on the recon mission... once again not my forte! but i know how busy trombe is, so i shall preserver and do my best, eh? then let him clean up the mess. (much love, trombs!)  
_

**Trombe: And its as messy as ever. And Sorry if I hadn't been getting back to those reviews and your questions. I'll address them as soon as possible.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 31: Breaking and Entering **

* * *

"Zuko, wake up."

The prince opened his eyes immediately. "What is it?"

"I think that's one of the communication towers over there," Katara informed him perfunctorily.

He glanced over Appa into the distance and saw, sure enough, the pointed spire of a communication tower with a Fire Nation flag waving above it, far out on the horizon.

He nodded to Katara.

Her blue eyes surveyed the tower with an unfamiliar hunger, like a predator anticipating a kill. It wasn't the kind of expression he was used to seeing on her. "So, what now?"

"All the navy's movements are coordinated by messenger hawk," he informed her. "And every tower has to be up to date on where everyone is deployed. Therefore, they should have the current position of the Southern Raiders somewhere in that tower."

"So we fly over there, bust in, and take the information we need." Katara's eyes flashed again as she forcefully decided on a battle plan.

"Not exactly," Zuko denied. "We can't be obvious about it. I recommend we rely on stealth and make sure no one spots us. Otherwise, they'll warn the Southern Raiders long before we reach them."

Katara considered that for a moment, and then nodded. "Do you have a plan?"

"The best way in is probably from the way they least expect. The side where the land drops like a cliff into the water. Can you get us up there?"

"Not a problem," she agreed.

"Good. Then we make our way in, and try and get in the air shafts."

"Air shafts?" Katara asked.

"Yes," Zuko explained. "In a large building like that, it's common to have air shafts running to every room to make sure that the air stays fresh and breathable."

"Why didn't we use those at the Boiling Rock to get in?"

Zuko shook his head. "They don't have them at the Boiling Rock." Katara raised an eyebrow. "Too obvious a place for prisoners to hide or escape from, since they have to lead to fresh air. They just added a lot of outdoor areas to the layout. One more reason we had to go to exercises daily. Land us over there, and fly low so they don't see us."

"I can do better than that," Katara promised, and she quickly whipped up a cloud of mist around them, making it appear as if she, Appa and Zuko were no more than morning fog coming across the sea.

"Impressive," Zuko admitted.

Katara ignored him.

Well, he hadn't thought it was going to be that easy anyway.

They sailed in on Appa, completely unseen by any watching guards, shrouded on all sides by Katara's waterbending. When they reached the land, they found a small cave, and hid Appa inside with relative ease. The air bison did not like caves in the slightest, but this one had plenty of breathing room, and the sky could be seen easily from within it. It was almost more of an alcove than a cave. Thanks to that, it only took slight tugging from Katara and few melons as bribery to convince the bison to bed down in its entrance where he'd be out of sight.

Most of their journey thus far had been made in relative silence, which suited Zuko well enough. He was content to travel for long periods of time without feeling the need to talk, and Katara's hard pressed drive seemed to fill all empty spaces conversation didn't. He knew that this was something she was doing, and he just happened to be along, so he let her set the mood. Besides, he wasn't a very chatty person himself, and he had a feeling that later in the trip he and Katara would need to have a long talk. At least, he hoped they would. So, for now, comfortable silence was as preferable to him as it was to his dark skinned companion.

Once Appa was settled, Katara and Zuko covered their faces with black cloths and made a run for the tower. As they reached the ocean area, Katara waved her hands in a bending form, and a large portion of the water solidified, icing over into what might have been a raft. As Katara leaped easily onto her frozen craft, Zuko hesitated only a second before following, crouching so as to insure he didn't fall, or slide off. The waves rose beneath them, splashing the prince here and there with freezing drops, and he scooted closer to the waterbender, having no desire to take a swim.

The raft built up speed, and eventually they reached their destination. Deciding they were close enough to mount an assult, Katara put on a final burst of speed. Then the water rose and lifted the raft and it's passengers towards the stormy sky, rocketing the iceberg upwards as high as it could go, until it's reached its climax. Knowing this was as close as they could get, Zuko followed Katara's lead and made a jump for shore, just as the raft propelled them higher. As it fell away, back into the stormy sea, Zuko landed soundlessly on the solid ground beside Katara, inwardly grateful for stone beneath his feet again. Having fallen off an air balloon twice less than two days before, he was experiencing a strong desire to keep his feet planted firmly on the ground as much as possible. He paused for a second to gather himself and watched the tides immediately snatch up the abandoned ice slab, and tug it under, smashing it up against the rocky cliff moments later. Only a few jagged pieces remained to show their passage, and they were melting slowly in the cold, raging water.

The sound of a door opening on their right drew Katara's attention, and she turned and silently edged her way around the corner of the building. As Zuko joined her, he saw two soldiers make their way out of the lit building and head for what he could only assume must be guard duty. The door behind them stayed open, and Katara made a dash for it.

Slightly perturbed that she hadn't even motioned she was going, or given him any warning as to her action at all, Zuko followed just as quietly, and the two slipped in unnoticed behind the guard's turned backs. Once inside, they ducked behind the stairwell that ran up into the rest of the tower, and Katara finally stopped pressing forward to look at him for advice.

Remembering Sokka's advice that his sister was only letting Zuko along for the ride, the prince decided not to press his luck by complaining about her near abandonment. He knew assuredly now it was his job to keep up on this mission, and decided not to expect any help from the waterbender that wasn't entirely necessary. His mind made up, Zuko motioned upward, and Katara followed his gaze to the air duct above them. "The control room should be near the top," he whispered simply through his face covering. "Where they can receive and send messenger hawks."

Katara nodded once to show she understood, then Zuko cupped his hands together and she took the hint. With out any other discussion or planning, the waterbender stepped lithely into Zuko's hands, he lifted her upward, and she jumped a little until she got a good grip on the edge. Heaving herself into the air duct, she held it open as she reached down a hand for him. By grabbing the back of the stairs and her hand combined, Zuko was able to pull himself up after her, and close the grate silently behind them.

Katara wiggled easily through the small ventilation areas, slipping silently through obstacles that had Zuko nearly pinned. More than once, she was forced to stop after crawling through areas where other pipes or passageways crossed theirs while Zuko struggled to fit his shoulders through the same places as her, or drag his legs after without making any noise. After once particularly tight squeeze, Zuko made a note to himself not to try this mission with anyone of considerable muscle. Surely Chi Tzang or that monster they called The Boulder would have crashed straight through the floor of the duct by now. Though Ty Lee probably would have been moving through the tiny spaces at a run...

Ahead of him, Katara made an exasperated sound as Zuko finally managed to wiggle most of the way free. But however long he took, she couldn't continue without him, because his directions alone sent them the right way at each turn; upwards, and towards the center. Zuko kept an eye out at every grate they passed to check their direction.

After about ten minutes of crawling, without any talking at all, other than Katara's one annoyed tsk-ing, Zuko motioned tightly to the waterbender, and she came back to join him at the grate he was positioned above. An officer was beneath them, marking a map with sure hands. Beside her was a large, organized case full of similar looking scrolls. Zuko motioned at them, mimed opening one, and pointed to his own eyes to show they needed to read one. Katara nodded, and then made a quick bending motion with her hands. The ink the woman was writing with jumped out of its plate and spilled across the map and her hands.

The woman made a discontent sound in her throat before pushing her chair back harshly and striding from the room. The minute the door banged shut behind her, Katara had the grate open, and dropped lightly into the room. Zuko followed quickly, making sure to slide the bolt on the door shut before joining her at the shelf. They didn't want any surprise visitors. "Which one?" she asked promptly.

"Okay," he whispered to himself as he scanned the names on the shelf. "Southern Raiders… Southern... This one." Katara followed his hands with her eyes attentively as he pulled the scroll from its slot and opened it wide across the table. His eyes darted over the markings as he took in the map. A red flag revealed their location. "Bam," he pegged them with a finger. "On patrol near Whale Tail Island."

He turned to Katara smugly. "...Bam?" she asked skeptically.

"What?" He tried to sound affronted as she shook her head and climbed back up the air shaft, but inside he was relieved; it was the first thing she had said since they landed that wasn't strictly business. It felt pleasant.

He glanced at the map one more time to insure he had memorized it, then rolled it back up contentedly. Stuffing the scroll back in its slot, he unlatched the door and jumped up behind Katara, catching the grate and pulling himself after her. Once again, she went ahead, so he got the not so unpleasant opportunity of watching her squirm through the air ducts, and she got a second dose of patience as Zuko tried less successfully to follow her.

"Can't you keep up?" she asked, her voice a near whisper when he got wedged a third time.

"You're a lot smaller than me," he reminded her, trying to drag his hips across the crossing vent they were passing.

Sighing, she turned back to help him. Freeing his clothes from where they'd snagged on the bolts, she grabbed his hands and put a foot on the vent, then pulled. Free of entanglement, his body slid out, and he wheel-barrowed for a moment while he tried to regain his balance. The result was him sliding over her, ending in her small frame once again pinned beneath his. Her face started to heat up above her mask, and an angry tick began on her eyebrow, but before she could say anything, he pressed his hand quickly over her mouth. Her jaw trembled beneath his fingers and her eyes spoke fathoms, but whatever it was she had intended to say was lost immediately when she also heard the sound of voices below them.

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it either," one guard was saying. "You would've thought the Boiling Rock was the safest place for prisoners too."

"You said they had the prince and the Avatar's waterbending teacher, both?" a second soldier asked. "And they all got away?"

"Them, and half the prison, as I hear it. Bunch of high class prisoners too, traitors and rebel leaders. Big pain in the ass for us."

"Still, Prince Zuko," the second mused. "I used to work in the palace… I never thought that sweet kid would become a traitor. But if he was caught with the waterbending girl…"

"Not just caught with her, for what I was told," the first man corrected. "Protected her the whole time they were in the Boiling Rock, and escaped with her as well. There's no excuse for it now – the boy's gone bad is all."

"I suppose you're right…"

The second guard's voice faded away as the two moved too far down the hall to be heard any more, and Katara's eyes rose up to Zuko's. _Protected her the whole time they were in the Boiling Rock _seemed to echo through the air duct too clearly. Katara's face flushed, and Zuko realized he was still laying atop her, his hand pressed firmly over her masked lips. He felt color rising in his own cheeks as he tried in vain to apologize and make room for her to move in the cramped space, but the best he could manage was to push himself up against the top of the air shaft and let her wiggle out from beneath him on her own. All in all, it was a very distracting process for him, and he was uncomfortably aware that Katara knew what he was thinking as she squirmed out from under him.

When she finally righted herself and crawled away down the vent, he knew he could expect no more help from her if he got stuck again, and he kept his eyes pointedly averted from her hips as she crawled ahead of him. It seemed no one believed in him any more.

As he struggled through a final cramped space, Katara lifted the grate they had come in through and climbed down. Zuko followed quickly, dropping out and stretching himself to his full height gratefully. He leaned back with his hands on his hips, and then bent over and touched his toes. When he looked back at Katara, her face was still determined, but she didn't seem as upset as she had when he'd pinned her in the vent. "What?" he asked, confused by the relative amusement on her face.

"You were a sweet kid?" she whispered. He blinked, and she elaborated. "The guard who used to work in the palace said you were a sweet kid."

"Oh, well… I guess I was," he considered. "Before Mom left."

He regretted it immediately, because at the word 'Mom' all hint of amusement left Katara's face and she turned back towards the door. "Come on," she stated coldly, and he was forced to follow after her a second time.

They rounded the corner and Zuko could see the cliff face again when there was a sharp voice behind them. "Halt! Who goes there?" Katara ducked around the corner and ran up to the edge, Zuko a step behind, but the stormy water was a far drop below them, and it crashed dangerously against the rocks, smashing debris heartlessly against the stony face. Zuko skidded to a halt as Katara's eyes scanned the water, looking for an escape. "I said stop!" the guard called again, firebending a light into his hands.

Zuko grabbed Katara's shoulder and pulled her behind a pillar. It wouldn't be enough to hide them if the guards came over, but at least it shielded them from the firelight. "What is it?" a second voice demanded, and Zuko cursed inwardly.

"I though I saw someone," the first guard reported. "They darted around that corner."

The second patrolling officer joined the first, a third, female guard with him, and they added their flames to the search. "If anyone's there, they're trapped," the woman stated. "There's no way out but the sea."

The second soldier raised his flame and Katara started to pull away from Zuko. "What are you doing?" he hissed.

She turned back to him and grabbed his hands suddenly, pulling them around her hips. He opened his mouth, confused, as she drew him into her. But before he could say anything she whispered, "hold on," …and then they were both falling.

The drop wasn't as long as it had appeared to be from the top. He barely had time to recall their last fall, where he had wildly tried to shield her from the muddy rocks below them. Then the water was rushing up to meet them, and he gasped a last minute breath and held on to Katara as though his life depended on it. Which, he thought suddenly, it probably did.

They hit the water and the current tugged at them. Then he was spinning downwards, everything cold. He couldn't tell which way was up, and water was rushing up his nose, cold and searing. Somewhere above them, he was aware of light, and he squeezed Katara tighter as her body jerked, threatening to pull away from his. He remembered the fate of their tiny ice raft when Katara stopped controlling it with waterbending, and was suddenly very afraid of losing his grip on her. At any moment they could crash into rocks, and it would all be over. _Please have a plan! _he prayed, trusting her because he could do nothing else. _Please, have a plan!_

Then whatever light he had sensed was gone, and Katara moved suddenly in his arms. He struggled to hold on to her as her body shot away from his. Water pummeled him, pressing downwards, but he held fast to the small body in his arms, and moments later his head broke the surface.

As he filled his burning lungs with sweet gasps of air, he felt something solid rise beneath him and lift him from the whirling waves. Moments later, he slumped against the surface of another ice raft, and Katara, still on her knees, began to wave her arms in circles, as if swimming. The raft propelled itself quickly across the raging water, drifting here or there with the current, but making a generally good line for the opposite bank where they had left Appa.

Zuko realized half way there that his hands were still locked around her hips, but as she hadn't said anything about them, he continued to hold on.

Her back was stiff as she moved her arms without hesitation, filled with the same assurance she had when she pulled them both off that edge. She seemed strong to Zuko then, not because of her words, but strong in the same way she had been back when he used to fight against her. Her eyes were the most piercing at times like these, when she was struggling, and he could see them now, bluer than water, and fiercer. Every current they met, she simply adjusted to, and the boat rocked and shifted, but never stopped. Minutes later, the ice raft scratched up on shore and melted out from beneath Zuko.

Katara's back finally slumped, and she pushed wearily out of Zuko's grasp. "Where'd you learn that?" Zuko dragged himself up on the bank as he watched her turn towards him. "I've never seen you move like that when you bend."

"That's swampbender style," she revealed. "I learned it, passing through."

He glanced back at the far off lights of the tower. "Did they see us?" he asked.

"I don't think so. I held us down until the lights were all gone. After that, it should have been too dark." Her eyes ran up and down him for a second, and he hoped she would take any shivering for cold. "You're not hurt?"

He shook his head. "I'm fine."

"Good." That simply, she stood, her gaze turning off to the horizon. "Whale Tail Island, here we come."

Zuko wondered if he still had water in his ears. "Right now?" She looked down at him, and her eyes made steel look soft. "I mean, shouldn't we let Appa have a rest? And dry off a bit first?" Katara raised a hand and made a few circles in the air with it, drawing all the water out of her clothes. It fell with a splash at her feet. Zuko sighed. "Well, Appa then."

"Fine." She spun, turning away abruptly. "We'll stay the night. But we move again at dawn."

"No complaints here," Zuko agreed gruffly, hurrying after her to the cave. "I'm always up by dawn…"

* * *

Zuko sat up abruptly. The storm outside the small cave was finally starting to ebb. A few bolts of lightning still streaked the sky, thunder rumbling far in the distance, but the rain had come and gone in less than an hour, a typical, tropical storm for the Fire Nation. The wind still whipped violently across the island, but it had dropped considerably from howling it had been making when he and Katara had dragged themselves into the cave and fallen into an exhausted sleep beside Appa. But the outside weather, however poor it may be, wasn't what had woken Zuko.

The fist in his face had been the cause.

Rubbing his jaw angrily, he glared over at the only other inhabitant of the cave capable of socking him. But Katara just mumbled dreamily something he didn't catch and then rolled over with a half snore. _Great, now she hates me in her sleep too. _The prince just couldn't seem to win with her.

Yet, never the less, the attraction remained. No matter how angry she got at him, or how close to Aang she became, Zuko's desire for her only continued to grow. It was just like Hakoda had said – he couldn't help it. He had always been someone who had to work for everything they got, so the harder Katara made it, the more he wanted her. And she was making it so hard!

But there were also moments, like now, as she slept, that she was soft too. When she healed him, her touch was so different, or when she had dozed on his lap in the Boiling Rock. She changed constantly, like her element, gentle and soothing one moment, and dangerously sharp the next.

As she tossed in her sleep again, he reached out to brush the hair off her face, and noticed immediately how troubled her expression was. Her lips were moving, as if speaking soundlessly, and her brows drew together tightly, wrinkling her forehead.

Upon observing this, the firebender began to fear her time in the icy water had given her a cold. He, himself, was already chilly, and with all the rain and ocean around them, he had found it nearly pointless to bother an attempt at drying himself. Instead, he had hung out his shirt off the floor in the back of the cave, hoping to at least have something dry to wear in the morning. Katara, he had thought, seemed to have better methods of keeping herself dry, but... If she caught a cold now, they wouldn't be able to finish the mission, and both she and her brother would likely kill him when they returned. Not to mention Aang. His decision made, he reached out to feel a cheek.

Her skin, thankfully, felt normal. However she cringed at his touch, tossing her head and rolling away with a shout.

"Katara, I didn't mean-" The prince jumped quickly away from her, afraid she'd awaken, ticked off to find him touching her in her sleep.

But his words ended abruptly as Katara made no move to show she had heard, and after a moment he realized she was still asleep, and muttering to herself. "Don't make me – I won't do it! Mother, don't let them…" Her voice was barely a whisper, but Zuko could hear the plea in it now.

Taking her shoulders in his hands he shook her, gently at first, and then more firmly, calling out to her while he did. "Katara! Katara, wake up. It's a dream. This is a nightmare, so wake up! Katara!"

* * *

Her mother sat before her again, kneeling at the mercy of that horrible man, the one she knew now was a Southern Raider. His eyes pierced Katara, and she was a small child, helpless to stop him. _Run Katara! _her mother urged, but Katara was afraid. If she left, the man would kill Mommy, she knew because it had happened before.

But there was another voice as well, a deep, old woman's voice, and it rang out where it shouldn't be; inside her. _Fight._ Katara struggled between the two commands. _Bloodbend, Katara. Save her. You could do it if you bloodbent – if you killed him…_

And then she was confused. Was the raider the one standing over her mother, the monster set on killing, or was it Katara who stood over him, a monster herself, with his life in her hands? She opened her mouth, and all that came out was Hama's cold laugh.

_Katara, _the Souther Raider spoke suddenly. _Wake up. It's a dream. This is a nightmare…_

"Wake up! Katara!"

Her eyes sprang open, and it wasn't the face of the murder before her, but Zuko's. The eyes were gold, not brown, and a scar ran along the left one, burring itself in his messy hair. The gaze wasn't monstrous; it was filled with concern.

"You, um… had a nightmare." The firebender spoke awkwardly, the worry fading quickly from his expression as the stoic look she was used to returned to his face.

"Well, I'm awake now," she told him crisply, brushing his hands off her shoulders. It was amazing how quickly that raider's face had turned into his. He drew back, giving her space, and she noticed him shiver slightly now that he was out of his blanket. His chest was bare, his still damp shirt tossed out over Appa's saddle behind them, and she was sure wet pants added to his chill. Feeling awkward herself now, she pulled her gaze immediately back up to his face. She could tell from the stony way his jaw clenched she'd been harsh with him again, and she chastised herself. She may not feel comfortable around the guy, but he was trying to help; she'd been having nightmares every time she closed her eyes, it was only so long until he noticed. "Thank you," she added, and though it sounded a bit strangled, at least it was polite.

He blinked at her as if he hadn't expected such a simple courtesy. "You're welcome," he responded hesitantly after a moment. "What were you dreaming about?"

"I don't remember," she lied quickly. "Good night, Prince Zuko." Katara pulled the light blanket she had up around her and rolled away from him, though she actually had no intention of sleeping again that night.

He sighed at the way she closed off the conversation, and after a moment, she heard him settling back to sleep himself. She was just starting to think it was safe to sit up, that he had fallen asleep again, when he spoke. "Katara?" Against her better judgment she made a responsive sound so he knew she had heard. "...If you hate me so much, why do you keep saving me?"

Her mouth opened before she realized she didn't have an answer, and she had to shut it again before she looked like an idiot. Then she remembered it was dark, and Zuko was behind her. She rolled onto her back as an excuse for delay as she remembered wondering the same thing earlier, two mornings before, when she had caught him and got him back on Appa. _I guess I just act too good all the time, _she slumped. _I'm still too soft to make it in this world – to protect Aang. Maybe Hama was right..._ But that wasn't an answer she could give Zuko. Then she remembered Zuko's face right after she had saved him. "If you hate Azula so much," she countered his question with her own, "why were you so worried about her when she fell the other morning?"

When she noticed his jerky head motion out of the corner of her eye she knew she'd caught him off guard. "I guess I don't really… hate her." The prince seemed to search for the right words. "She's my sister, right? I'm supposed to protect her, like how Sokka cares about you, but… Even though she spent most of her life trying to ruin mine, and even though I know what she does is wrong, I don't just want to see her die, I guess. I know she has to, in the long run, but… I just don't want to have to watch it."

"And what about your father?" Katara questioned, trying to keep the suspicion out of her voice.

"I would have killed him myself if it weren't Aang's job, but Kin-slaying is sort of frowned upon." The detachment in Zuko's voice frightened her. "I don't want my own father's blood on my hands, even if he is the world's worst dad, but if I must... I'll do whatever it takes to end this war, even if it means doing it myself." He rolled towards her suddenly, his golden eyes intense and somewhat accusing. "Are you happy now?"

She looked back up, away from him, and shook her head no. "But I will answer your question," she decided. "I don't know."

"What?"

"You asked why I keep saving you, like on Appa yesterday, or I guess today in the ocean, and my answer is, I don't know. It's not even that you're Aang's firebending teacher. I guess, maybe, I just don't have what it takes to let someone die when I have the chance to do something about it, no matter how I feel about them personally." _Or maybe I don't hate you as much as I wish I could… _The thought alone scared her, and she wished even harder he'd do or say something right then that would make her mad at him again.

"We'll see soon enough," Zuko reminded her, "when we find the man you're after."

Katara felt her heart harden again. It wasn't at Zuko anymore, but at least she could feel the resolve inside her still. "Yes. I'm sure we will."

Zuko didn't say anything after that, and Katara didn't want him to. She could feel the anger inside her again, deep down. Before, she had grabbed onto that, and directed it at Zuko. Now she had another outlet for it, but her hurt became hatred, and that hatred gave her strength. And nightmares. But it also gave her enough determination to stay awake, where the dreams couldn't get her.

She clung to that resolve, because it was the only thing keeping her from breaking down right now. When she thought about Zuko, and how she had actually been happy when they were friends, about the times she had felt safe around him, or about how much she wanted to trust him again, that resolve crumbled. Right now she needed it. Much as she hated to admit it, even to herself, right now she needed Zuko because she needed someone she could hate. Someone who could take it. Someone she could justify giving it to.

As Zuko's light snores began to rumble through the cave, Katara watched the storm outside, waiting for dawn, when they could start again. Eventually, the winds calmed, and the clouds, while still present, began to look less threatening. Even a few stars became visible, though day was almost on them.

Appa stirred behind her, and Katara stood, bending some water for him to drink from the fresh rain outside. Then she found some melons and hay in the pack and watched the beast Aang loved so eat. When he finished, the bison looked up at the sky and gave a mournful growl. Katara laughed. "You're as eager to be off as me, aren't you boy?" Appa snorted, rubbing his nose on her hand. "Well, I can't sleep anyway. Zuko!"

"What!" The prince sat up, his hands automatically drawing his twin swords as he yawned himself awake. "What happened?" He fumbled the right one, but the left came firmly to his hand.

Katara tried not to let the action remind her of Sokka, but the vivid similarity bored into her memory. "Nothing," she assured him. "It's almost dawn."

"It's still dark." It wasn't a complaint; just a statement.

"I know. But I can't sleep. And Appa's already awake too, so you can finish your rest while we move."

Zuko stood and rubbed his eyes. "Shouldn't you get some more sleep?"

"I'm fine," Katara insisted, her voice harsher than she had meant it. "Catch."

She slung Appa's saddle over the giant, furry animal, and Zuko obeyed, reaching up to grab the clasp and help fasten it onto the bison's back. "Do you know where you're going?" he asked as he tucked away his swords, moving carefully.

"Northeast," Katara supplied. "Whale Tail Island should be about a mile off the coast, a good day's flight northeast from here." She glanced at Appa. "You up for that, boy?" she asked, and the bison made an affirmative, throaty sound, causing Katara to smile.

"He just wants out of this cave," Zuko surmised, and Appa made the noise louder. "Well, fine with me." Katara was surprised he gave in so easily, but expected he just wanted more sleep badly, since he had stayed up the whole night before waiting outside her tent, and most of this one flying and breaking into the communications tower. Granted, he'd caught a catnap on the way, but he still looked almost as sleep deprived as she was. "We'll change shifts in a few hours, and you can get some rest then," he added, climbing up into Appa's saddle and dragging his blanket after him.

"Sure," Katara agreed in a discontented manner. "Right."

But she had what she wanted, so she grabbed Appa's horn and swung onto his head, catching the reigns as the bison made for the cave's mouth. She didn't even have to call fog around them, the morning was still so dark and wet. Appa flew away from the tower completely unseen, and Katara felt the dark determination rise in her stomach again.

"Look out, Southern Raiders," she whispered. "I'll be there tonight."

* * *

Zuko watched Katara as they flew away from the cave. The girl was more weary than he had ever seen her before, and yet she showed no intention of quitting. _Sokka was exactly right, _Zuko realized. _She decides on a course of action, and then follows it, regardless of what I think. I'm just along for the ride..._

But he knew Sokka was right about more than that too. When he had woken her up from her nightmare, he'd become sure of it. Katara did need more than vengeance on this trip. She needed help - his help. And she needed sleep. So, whether she wanted it or not, whether she hated him forever for giving it, Sokka was right. She needed him.

He settled in and let sleep take him. He knew the comfortable silence they had establish couldn't last much longer, but if he was to keep a cool head with her, he needed to rest himself first. When he awoke, he decided, he would do whatever it took, whatever she needed, to help her.


	32. Chapter 32:The Southern Raiders

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: i want to be able to make bubble like katara does... but, i guess i'll have to settle for my scuba license...  
_

**Trombe:Why must your author's note always be about nothing? And everyone who reviewed, thanks a lot for hanging in there with us. It hasn't been easy but we hope to make progress with this story real soon. After the southern raiders its pretty much going to be an alternate take with us as I hope to rewrite the end of book fire.  
**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 32: The Southern Raiders  
**

* * *

Midday, and the sky was still gray. Clouds hung above them, but sun streaked through them in places. Katara wondered if the storm was finally going, or coming again. It seemed as if the billowing clouds were chasing Appa across the horizon, gaining on them whenever they stopped, and falling behind wherever they flew, but always there. Like her mood, dismal, gray and cold.

"You should get some rest." Katara was startled by Zuko's voice. He must have finally woken. "We'll be there in a few hours. You'll need all your strength."

"Oh, don't you worry about my strength," she assured him dispassionately. "I've got plenty. I'm not the helpless little girl I was when they came last time."

"No," Zuko agreed. "You're not. But you still need rest."

Katara stiffened as Zuko's body landed suddenly behind her. He must have climbed up onto Appa's head to sit with her. One leg slipped on either side of her hips, and his black clad arms reached around her to take the reigns. "What are you doing?!" she choked out as his limbs surrounded her. "Get away! I'm still mad at you."

"No," the Prince repeated himself. "You're not."

"Excuse me?" Katara asked, her tone dangerous.

"I said, you're not really mad at me, are you?"

"Zuko, I've been mad at you for days now! Since you first came to join us! For as long as I can remember! Why would you think I wasn't mad?"

"That was different." The way he stated it was so matter of fact, she almost found herself believing him. Where this resolve had come from she wasn't sure, but the prince's sudden change in attitude had definitely made fighting him harder. However it did make him easier to hate, despite his words. "It was different, and you know it," he insisted again. "I figured it out for sure last night in the cave. Before you hated me because you didn't know if you could trust me, you didn't think you could believe in me. But we moved past that, Katara. I know we did."

Memories of the Boiling Rock came flooding back into her mind.

"That was before you started keeping secrets from me!" she yelled, snatching the reigns back and making Appa grumble unhappily.

But Zuko didn't rise to the bait. His voice stayed calm and strong as he held out his wrist. "Katara, you are someone I've admired, long before I ever realized that I felt anything… else… for you. You're someone I'm _supposed _to be friends with – isn't that why you gave me this?" He pushed back his sleeve in front of her as he asked, and she saw her mother's bracelet wrapped around his wrist, looking like a mockery to her hatred. "You said it was our promise, to never stop trying, right?"

"...I should never have let you have that," she cursed herself.

"But you did," Zuko reminded her, his voice driving unceasingly onward, cool and determined. "And taking it means I promised too. I don't go back on promises. That's why I'm telling you, this isn't the same. The way you felt before, how you treated me, it was cold, and dispassionate. Your anger now is completely opposite! Trust me, I know a thing or two about anger. You are filled with it, and you don't know who to hate, how to get rid of it-"

"Stop it," Katara demanded. "It's not like that."

"I used to feel like that every day," Zuko pressed on. "All the time. I would yell at Uncle, and say the meanest things to him. But he was always there for me. He never took it personally, and I didn't realize how much I depended on that until he was gone."

"I said stop it!" Katara shouted. "I'm not like you! I'm not spoiled and hateful!" She knew as it left her lips she would regret it, and kept her eyes averted so she wouldn't see his reaction to her cold words.

"Well, you're certainly acting like it."

Katara bit her tongue angrily. Zuko didn't even seemed phased by her insults. It was like they bounced right off him. "Listen," he told her earnestly, "I know what it's like to need someone to vent it at. I lost Uncle and so I understand now how much crap he took from me. That's why I'm going to be there for you. You can hate me as much as you want, blame me for anything, everything, so long as it makes you feel better. And when we get to these Southern Raiders, you can take it out on them too. I'm not Aang. I won't judge you, or tell you right from wrong. And no matter what happens, I won't leave you, Katara. Not while I still have this."

Katara watched the necklace dangle from his wrist as Zuko tucked it back in his sleeve. Then he once again attempted to take Appa's reigns firmly from her hands. "Stop it!" she yelled at him again, pulling her hands away from his in efforts to keep control of the bison. "Stop it, Zuko!" But his arms were longer, and he reached around her and caught hold of the reigns, westing them from her grasp with ease. "I hate you!" She shouted, turning around and slapping him across the face with all her strength. "I hate you! Give those back!"

But he continued to seem completely unconcerned by her aggression. "No," he said simply, ignoring the hand print rising on his face. "Not until you sleep."

"How can I sleep with you like this?" she demanded.

His face finally took on an expression. Confusion. "We've slept like this before, back in the Boiling Rock," he pointed out.

Katara's face flushed, even her ears turning red. "That was out of necessity!" she shouted. "And that was before… you…"

"Well," Zuko stated promptly. "I think that it's a necessity again. Or were you sleeping with Aang and Sokka before we left because your dreams were peaceful and happy, like last night?" Katara glared at him angrily. "Come on, this isn't about, you know… that. Here, look, I'll keep my hands out here in front of you, like this, on the reigns, where you can see them at all times, okay?"

As Zuko lifted Appa's reigns slightly in his grip, Katara made a grab for them again, but Zuko deftly held them away from her. She realized how tired she must be if she couldn't even get the reigns from the prince when she was seated in front of him. _I really do need sleep. _But it irked her even more that he was right. "Why won't you let go?" she demanded, one last time.

"Because, I'm your friend," Zuko reminded her. "You told me so."

Snorting angrily, she crossed her arms and leaned back against him. "You know I'm going to make you regret this, right?"

"I am sure you will."

His tone wasn't mocking at all, and Katara's weariness was getting the better of her. She just didn't have the energy to fight with him. "I still don't want to sleep like this with you."

"Mmm…" He glanced around. She could tell he was craning his neck from his motions, even though he was behind her. "Then…" he said, as if searching for a subject, "why don't you tell me about her?"

"What?"

"Your mother," he clarified. "Tell me about her."

"Why should I?" she objected stiffly.

"Isn't that what your group always does with things that upset them? Talk about it?" Katara huffed, and crossed her arms, sinking unwittingly back into Zuko's chest as she did. "Only if you want to, I mean."

"What did Sokka tell you?" she asked eventually, despite her better judgment. _Well, he did come along with me. I guess the least I can do is clue him in on what he's getting into._

"Not much," Zuko admitted. "Well, not much about the actual... death... I mean. I don't think he knew a lot about it anyway. Just that you were both very young when the raiders came, and… that you saw most of it, and came running for help. By the time he found out anything had happened at all, he'd already missed it."

"Yeah, well, it was better for him that way," Katara admitted. "He could get over it."

"But not for you," Zuko predicted. "I never found out what happened to my mother. I still don't know. I asked my father at... our last meeting, but..." Somehow Katara got the impression that whatever information the Fire Lord had provided at this last 'meeting' with his son had been less than satisfactory for the prince. He made a discontented humming noise in his throat that she could feel vibrating through her, and she was tempted to push away from him again when he continued. "I think Azula knows…"

"Are you going to ask her?" Katara wondered, forgetting the momentary urge to shove him off her back, despite how slight their actual contact was.

"No," Zuko denied. "If I find out, I'll do it for myself. And I do plan on finding out. But, if you want, I'll listen to you. I want to know more about you, Katara, I promised myself I would get to know you better, and if this is what's on your mind, then you can tell me. It shouldn't be something you have to deal with alone. Not when I'm here."

Katara told herself to suspect him, to remember that he was only saying these things because he had feelings for her, but part of her wanted to tell him too. She couldn't tell Sokka, it would hurt him too much, and she couldn't tell Aang. Aang had already shown that he walked the straight and wider view of life, and that wasn't the path this memory put her on. She loved the boy dearly, but what she needed right now was exactly what Zuko had just done. She needed someone strong enough to help her end it. If she wasn't strong enough or didn't have the dark streak Hama claimed she needed to finish all of this, then she needed someone who did have that strength. Zuko had a darkness inside him that could understand hers, but somehow he also had managed to find light to balance it. She couldn't deny it – she needed Zuko now.

And she needed to talk about it.

"When the black snow came, Sokka and I were in the middle of snowball fight. I remember, because everything stopped so suddenly, I felt as if the snowballs should be suspended in mid-air. Every person in the village was still, and it was frightening.

"Then everything happened at once. The Fire Navy ships appeared on the horizon, and everyone was snatching up spears, swords, weapons of any kind. Faces that I knew and loved turned vicious and savage as the men of my village prepared for war. It was chaos. Sokka always talks about the warriors of our village with pride, but... I guess now that I'm older I understand that better, now that I've fought beside them and everything, but back then," she bit her lip slightly, "back then the face paint scared me. Everyone looked the same, so angry and savage, not at all like the people I knew. No one was talking either. They were as silent as if death had already come for them." She gave a small shiver as she remembered how different the whole town had become in an instant - everything changed; dark and foreign in a heartbeat.

"I was afraid. If everyone was fighting, I knew Dad would be too. And, after one look at Sokka, I knew he was going to fight as well. I was so scared. To this day, I hate seeing Sokka in that make-up. He used to practice putting it on when we were children, telling me that one day he was going to be a strong warrior just like our dad, and protect the village and such. I would cry and cry whenever he wore it. He used to think it was because I missed Dad, but it was really because I was afraid of him when he wore it, of what might happen to him. It was the same on that day. He watched the warriors with a hunger in his gaze and I knew what he was going to do. I didn't want to see my brother start fighting, and I didn't want to see my friends fight either. I just wanted one thing. My mother.

"So I told Sokka I was going to find Mom, and I ran off before things got worse. Explosions made the ground shake, and I was nearly run over by our own warriors, charging to shore. Their grim faces scared me. Fire and smoke were all around me, and for a time I was lost in my own village, because everything was so dark and different. I heard people screaming, and ships crashed right into our village, smashing through the ice and dropping gangplanks full of soldiers, just like yours did on the day I met Aang…"

Katara trailed off as she recalled how Sokka had painted his face that day too, the day they had all met Zuko, and she had been more afraid then than ever before that she would lose him. But even back then Zuko had been different than the raiders. Despite the fact that Sokka had fought him, even humiliated the prince by catching him off guard with a boomerang, Zuko had still spared Sokka's life once he had what he'd wanted. Aang.

Zuko shifted uncomfortably behind her and she realized she had stopped talking. Searching briefly through her thoughts, she remembered where she had left off. "Finally, I found myself at my Gran-gran's house, and I knew where I was in the village. Right next to her home, I recognized our own house, Sokka, Dad, Mom's and mine. I knew that my mother would be there, probably worried about me, so I ran to it. But when I pushed back the cloth entrance, I wasn't prepared for what was inside.

"My mother was there," Katara continued, now slightly angry. "And, I called out to her. But she wasn't alone. As I stepped into the house, our house – where I was supposed to be safe! – there was a man between us. A firebender." Zuko's hands tightened on the reigns, and Katara wondered dimly what his face must look like at that moment, but she was too caught up in her own memories to turn and look.

"I remember my mother talking to him. She told him to let me go, not to hurt me, and she'd give him whatever information he wanted. I didn't understand what he wanted back then, but now, I'm sure, she was trying to protect me somehow. Like when the man yelled at me angrily - I think he said, 'you heard your mother – get out of here!' but I don't remember clearly except that when he yelled I was terrified and cried. I didn't know why he was in our house. I just remember being so scared, so incredibly scared, and not understanding anything. I tried to tell her, to tell my mother I was scared, but she told me to go find my dad. I remember her words clearly, and the worried, determined look on her face that made me even more frightened." Katara didn't know if she was making sense any more. She wasn't sure her story was on a progressive line, but Zuko didn't say anything, and now that she'd started, she knew she had to keep going, all the way to the end, even if it didn't make sense. This wasn't for Zuko anyway. This was for her. "I remember what she said then." Katara choked slightly, but pushed the emotion down inside her again. "I remember it exactly. 'Go find your dad, sweety,' she told me. 'I'll handle this.' They were the last words she ever said to me.

"They were a lie." The statement left Katara's mouth like a curse, driving away all the remembered fear, all the welling pain and sorrow. "I think I knew it even then. I knew something was wrong, horribly, terribly wrong. But when I looked up at that man, that soldier, his eyes were so mean, so filled with hate, that I ran away. I wasn't even scared of the battle any more. Mom's face, and his eyes, were twice as scary. I ran as fast as I could, right out into the fight, and I found my father in the very center of it. He was smashing a firebending soldier's head into a glacier, and snow tumbled all around him. The world around us was chaos, but when I called to him, he turned all his attention to me immediately.

"'Dad, I think Mom's in trouble. There's a man in our house.' I still remember my words, because his reaction was so vivid. He yelled my mother's name-"

"Kaya," Zuko spoke suddenly, his deep, masculine tones seeming to fill in her father's voice, complete her story somehow, and she didn't even ask how he knew the name; she was just glad he was still there, still listening.

"-and then he scooped me up in his arms, and we ran for the house. I know I was crying again while he ran, but… we were too late. When we got there the man was gone. And so was she." Katara's knees pulled up as she hugged them to her chest, but even now, no tears came. Just silent, empty hatred, and the knowledge that she was so close to finding that man again. "They killed her." Her voice was as cold as the stormy wind in her face. "Dad… he shielded me from most of it, but I saw. I saw the thick red blood on the doorstep, and the way her body was sprawled across the floor... I saw enough. And I knew…" Katara drew in on herself, and for a while, silence stretched out.

"Your mother was a brave woman," Zuko spoke suddenly, reminding her that he was there again.

She realized that when she had pulled her legs up, she had leaned back against him, and now his body wrapped gently around hers. This thought pulled her sharply back into the present, and she was once again well aware of how much of him was touching her. But at least he was wearing a shirt now, and his hands were still out in front her where she could see them. For the moment, she decided, she was too tired to care. Whatever their relationship was, or wasn't, she knew it would wait. She could sense the silent agreement from the prince as well. He was doing this as a friend, as exactly what she needed now. And he had said her mother had been brave. The charm on her mother's necklace was glinting in the dying sunlight, where it hung on his wrist, re-emphasizing his words. "I know," she told him, reaching out to touch it.

Despite the fact that he had promised to keep his hands on the reigns, Katara gently drew his right one off them, pulling it, and the necklace, into her lap. She leaned back into him, feeling his strength, and she let her fingers drift slowly over the familiar markings on the stone. He didn't protest once, or make any move that might cause her to feel uncomfortable with being pressed again him. He just shifted slightly behind her so that the hand she had pulled into her lap held her gently in place on Appa's head. The wind was in her hair, but Zuko was warm, and his sturdy hand kept her solidly in her seat. Actually secure for once, she let the familiar, safe feeling she often got when Zuko held her sweep over her, giving into the headiness that his proximity brought, and in no time, sleep had overcome her.

It was the first, dreamless sleep she had had in nights.

* * *

"Sokka?"

The boy gave a jerk as his girlfriend's voice came across the grass.

"What are you doing?"

He turned his head around to face her, scrambling quickly to his feet. "Ah... haha... nothing! Nothing at all, why do you ask?"

Suki crossed her arms, pursing her big lips doubtfully. "Why are you out here all by yourself?"

"I was just... you know..." He gestured stupidly out towards the ocean, where the just waning moon peeked out from between the clouds. "Watching the night?"

"Well, can I watch with you?" the Kyoshi warrior asked, her voice flirtatious.

"No," Sokka denied too quickly. Suki's eyebrow shot up in surprise. "Ah... what I mean is... That's probably not a good idea because... it's cold."

"Cold?" Suki repeated.

"Yeah, cold." Sokka nodded to himself. "I wouldn't want you to get sick. It's pretty windy up here."

"Sokka, is something wrong? Is it...her?"

"What? No! Why would you say that?"

"You're just... acting like, well, like you don't want me around." Suki finished abruptly, as if saying it faster might make it less true.

"Suki!" Sokka denied, with mock affront. "I always want you around! Come on, let's go back to camp, and I'll show you just how much I like having you around."

"Really? You're alright?" Sokka nodded. "All right. Let's go."

But as the two made their way back to camp, Sokka hung back a bit, watching his girlfriend duck into the tent ahead of him. He paused, and turned around to glance at the moon again, hearing the light sound of Aang's footsteps as the boy dropped suddenly off the massive rock behind him. "She can hear you, you know," Aang said quietly.

"What? Who can hear me?" Sokka tried to wave off the Avatar by reaching for his tent, but the boy's all knowing eyes seemed to follow him.

"I can see her, sometimes," Aang revealed. "And she's looking out for you. I know it."

Sokka sighed, dropping his hold on the tent flap. "Well, let's just hope she's looking out for Katara too, because that's what I was praying for."

"Yeah," Aang agreed. "Me too."

* * *

"Katara."

She stirred, not wanting to come awake.

"Katara, wake up. We're here – I found them."

Her mission flowed back into her with sudden, heart-breaking rage, and she sat up, aggression filling her eyes. Zuko's hand was still about her waist, the reigns held tightly in it, but the other was closed around a spy glass. He was regarding her with mild surprise, most likely caused by the harshness she had awoke with. "Where?" she asked, not even bothering to shove his hand off her lap.

"Ah, there." The prince pointed as he handed her the spyglass, and she gazed across the sea, towards the boat she knew held her mother's murderer. "See those sea-raven flags?" Katara squinted to make out the image on them, and she felt Zuko's hand bracing her slightly as she leaned out, away from Appa, but it didn't matter. At this moment in time, she felt nothing. least of all him. "It's the Southern Raiders."

Determination was the only thing inside her right now. The rest was empty, and cold, and she wanted it that way. She had let out everything earlier, and now she felt somewhat stale, and overly alert. All of which suited her perfectly at the moment. She lowered the spyglass. "Let's do this."

Zuko glanced at her curiously, but he just nodded. It seemed, somehow, he was feeling the same resolve she was. Maybe his wasn't as strong, but Katara could sense he was on the same wavelength as her, both prepared to face whatever that ship held with cloaked passions. With that adamant feeling between them, a small thing like a hand on her hips meant nothing. "Hold on to me," she told him, taking the reigns firmly and patting Appa's head. "Whenever you're ready, boy."

* * *

Appa made a deep grumble and Zuko's grip pressed against waterbender as the bison plummeted sharply towards the ocean. She glanced back at him, and must have seen the stoic, battle ready face, because her eyes looked away, satisfied. As they hit the water, he didn't even ask what her plan was, just held on to her more tightly, knowing they were in this together, and making himself trust her completely. He took a deep breath as he pulled her towards him.

But the shock of the icy water the prince was expecting never came. As Appa's feet broke the surface, Katara twisted water immediately up on all sides, bending it like a ball of string around them, and enclosing herself, Zuko and Appa's head in a bubble of breathable air.

Water passed to either side of them, the dark, chilly streams of the ocean, and a few fish drifted past. Sound from outside cut away, the howling wind they had grown accustomed to disappearing completely. Silence filled their echoing world, save for noises they alone made. Zuko heard his own awed gasp bounce around and come back to him, splintered. As if in slow motion, he watched the hull of the Southern Raider's ship pass over them, a dark, domineering shadow, and he knew the only thing between him and the smothering water outside was the slim form of the waterbender he still clung to. He had never imagined a world as foreign as this ocean bubble.

A world with only the two of them.

And then Appa broke the surface, and his mind returned to the task at hand.

If the cold water had any adverse effect on her, Katara did not show it, as she was the first to launch a preemptive strike against the ignorant southern raiders. Motioning deftly, the girl sent the northern style's signature water whip wailing across the ship, and she caught a raider dead on as the whip coiled without mercy around a man. Like a snake of the depths it dragged it's victim down towards the water, the raider helpless before its pull.

Zuko winced at the sight. He would never have wanted to be on the receiving end of that technique.

But the master waterbender wasn't done yet. Even as the whip sank back into the waves, she commanded the ocean to tilt the boat with a powerful wave. It was as if the god of the seas himself had taken hold of the ship in the palm of his hands. The sudden jerk the ship had faced cause many more of the surprised raiders to fall to the icy blue before them.

"Ambush!" Finally someone seemed to have taken noticed of what was going on.

But the prince was not about to lose their momentum. Jumping off the Avatar's great spirit beast, Zuko landed with much force and spotted the one who was hastily making his way to the alarm box. He was not about to let that happen. Raising his left leg up as high as he could Zuko then unleashed the built up force inside him, bringing his extended leg down. The axe kick generated a surge of glowing fire that lit up the night sky as it trailed on the metallic surface and caught the raider by surprise, his whole body caught ablaze. Screaming in pain the raider's only other viable option was to choose the murky depths of the waters.

To his left he saw Appa landing and Katara was quick to follow in his actions as she guarded his flank, dropping any raider who was foolish enough to confront the both of them with the powerfully long striking range of her octopus stance. Zuko smirked. They should have known better. Out here in the ocean blue, the waterbenders were undisputed.

While they seem to have taken out a good majority of the raiders, it wouldn't be long before more would come from the deck below them. Zuko would rather not have wasted more time fighting ill-trained soldiers. They needed to take what they came for.

As he scanned his surroundings for any more surprise attacks, Zuko signaled to Katara to continue on with the plan as the two of them quickly moved to the heart of the ship.

Making their way in the dark halls of the ship, two more raiders shouted out as they tried to fight off the intruders on their proud vessel. Cramped quarters made it near impossible to take advantage of firebending's wild explosive style, but Zuko had more than one trick up his sleeve. Running up the sides of the wall, he vaulted over the two with ease, trapping the raiders in a pincer move between himself and the vengeful waterbender. The banished prince quickly subdued one by disarming the raider's dao sword while Katara effortlessly pinned the other to the ground, frozen in place.

Zuko was really quite impressed with the southern water tribe girl. As many times as he had watched her fight - whether with or against him - each time she seemed to have a new element he wasn't expecting. Even now, she seemed different, wilder, than he remembered her. Garbed in the similar black clothing he was in it made her look more dangerous... yet alluring at the same time.

Desperately he shook off the last bit of that thought. This was no time to be admiring how good Katara looked. There was urgent matters to attend to, like vengeance for once. Determination setting back in, Zuko wedged the stolen dao sword into the gap where the door's lock mechanism was. He had a feeling Katara did not want to be disturbed by anyone when she finally confronted this man.

At the end of the hall was a big, locked door. Katara stopped before it without Zuko even telling her where it led. Somehow, she knew. "This is it, Katara," the prince prepared her, his voice muffled in the cloth covering his nose and mouth. "Are you ready to face him?"

Katara ripped her own covering away from her face and blasted the water from her arms into the metal door. It creaked once, and then exploded away, startling Zuko with the force behind Katara's waterbending. But even that felt distant, like someone else's surprise. His focus was intertwined with hers now, and it was all bent on the figure behind the door.

The minute the door collapsed, fireblasts immediately filled the room, and Zuko didn't give Katara the chance to gather more water. He stepped in front her of and caught every attack, smothering them as they hit his arms, and dispelling the flames harmlessly away. This man would never hurt Katara again – Zuko wouldn't let him.

After three blasts collided pointlessly with the advancing prince, he finally had an opportunity to return, his own flames exploding at the commander's feet, and forcing him to lose ground. "Who are you?" the man cried when Zuko's fire stopped.

"You don't remember her?" Zuko demanded, taking control of the situation. "Well, you will soon. Trust me."

As Zuko sent a second flaming attack towards the leader, the man sidestepped, Zuko's attack fizzling out on the ship's helm, and the raider prepared to launch his own attack. Zuko positioned himself to defend against it, both himself, and Katara. But as the man lifted his fist, his wrist twisted oddly and he stopped, stone still, his eyes widening. His arm snapped right, and then left, pulling his body awkwardly after the thrashing limb as he gasped. "What's… happening to me?" His helmet rolled uselessly to the side.

But as Katara's hand glided down the front of her face and the man sunk into a kneeling position, Zuko knew _exactly _what was happening, even if he didn't know how. _Bloodbending…_ His eyes widened as he watched Katara embrace the thing she feared and hated so, and the raider groaned as his own body betrayed him, bending him to the girl's will.

Zuko glanced out the window behind the bowing man. The clouds had parted temporarily, and moonlight streamed into the room. Zuko didn't understand. The moon wasn't full! But, it nearly was. It had been full a mere four nights ago when Katara first bloodbent, and if he hadn't known for a fact it had already passed, he might not even have noticed the slight waning in the full circle the moon created. It was shining so brightly, he got the strange feeling that it was _trying._

Completely full or not, it seemed to be enough for Katara. And in her cold rage, the ethics she so often boasted seemed to have gone out the door. The prince couldn't say he blamed her. "How can you not know me?" Katara demanded, her voice deathly quiet.

Deciding the how and why weren't what was important at the moment, Zuko focused himself back to the murderer before them, waiting to be accused. "Think back," Zuko prompted. "Think back to your last raid on the Southern Water Tribe. I want to hear you say it yourself."

"I… I don't know what you're talking about," the man gasped, trying to breathe while his body smashed itself against the hard deck. "I never raided any Water Tribes. Please!" he added as Zuko crouched angrily beside him. "I don't know!"

_This has to be him! _Zuko had come too far, risked too much to get Katara here, only to be proved wrong. He _had _to be the man! "Don't lie!"

If he was wrong, if this wasn't it, Katara would have gone through all of this, all that anger, and wouldn't be satisfied. It would just linger – and it would be his fault. She would blame him, and Zuko would lose everything. Lose when they were this close to finding him!

He grabbed the man forcefully, lifting his head by the ponytail that had been beneath his head guard. "You look her in the eye and you tell me you don't remember what you did! I know it was you!" Zuko roared as he pointed at Katara.

The girl took a step forward, twisting her arms so that the man was forced up to his knees, now properly able to look her in the eyes, which were smoldering. Zuko had never thought he'd see the blue eyes of a waterbender burn so fiercely, but Katara's were aflame.

And then the flame died. Her eyes widened horribly, and Zuko knew something was wrong. "It's not him," she whispered.

"What?" Zuko's response was cut short as Katara dropped her hands and the raider fell with a thud at the prince's feet, his ponytail sliding through Zuko's fingers.

"He's not the man," Katara repeated dully.

"What do you mean he's not?" Zuko demanded, barely refraining from using her name in front of their prisoner. "He's the leader of the Southern Raiders! He _has _to be the guy!" This whole plan was coming apart.

Katara's eyes had gone dull now. The determination, the anger, everything in them was just gone. Her shoulders slumped, and a shadow fell across the room as the moon disappeared behind storm clouds again. _No!_ Zuko decided. _That's not it! I _will_ find him!_

Grabbing the captive by the arm, he pushed the man to his feet, slamming him back against the wall. Bloodbending wasn't the only way to make someone submit, and the man stared in fear at the rage Zuko suddenly displayed. "This does _not _end here!" the prince roared. "If you're not the man we're looking for, who is? Tell me!"

"You must be looking for Yan Ra," the raider supplied quickly, his words awkward as he was smashed against the window. "I replaced him heading these raiders. He retired four years ago."

Zuko's head spun quickly towards Katara, hoping he hadn't failed, hoping she was still with him.

Her back stiffened, and her hand curled into a fist. Without even seeing her face, he knew.

They were going after Yan Ra next.


	33. Chapter 33:Revenge

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: greetings my good readers. i can hardly believe we've posted 33 chapters of this, and there are so many of you still in love with the story! we are ever so pleased to please each of you. i think you might find we're about to take another (slightly) darker twist. we feel it suits zuko's character well, and sincerely hope you like it. (there, no silly comments. all dark and story focused, with reader thanks - serious enough for you trombe? you're so boring :P)  
_

**Trombe: I'm not boring. I'm methodical...like a clock...which is boring. Oh...I walked right into that one.**

_artsyelric: well, that's rare... i think i actually won one... WHAT DO I DO? i never win our little a.n.'s - you're too good... i think i'm shock XDD_

**

* * *

What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 33: Revenge

* * *

**

Zuko worked his right hand, open, closed, open, closed. Over and over he repeated the motion, each time noting every part of his hand he could feel, every part that hurt, and every part that still felt numb. That was the way burns worked. Some parts you couldn't register, as if the nerves had been fried, other parts felt as if they held in the fire that had hurt them. Thanks to Katara's rushed healing back in Hama's forest, there was considerable less damage to his hand, and it looked as if the burn had been made weeks ago. But it still made it hard to handle a sword.

Behind him, he heard Katara return to the camp, and immediately stopped stretching his fingers. The comfortable silence mood had come over them again, but this time Zuko wasn't sure how entire comfortable his counterpart actually was. Perhaps silence put the prince at ease, but the waterbender just seemed to be brooding now. Zuko was reasonably sure she was at her wits end. Honestly, he was expecting a breakdown any time now, and just hoping that they could make it through this trip before Katara lost it completely.

She had said little to nothing since the raid the night before, except for one brief exchange, _you didn't use your swords._ He didn't tell her it was because he was having trouble with his burned hand. She had already healed it once, and bringing up pointless thoughts of Hama was the opposite of what he was going for since he had decided to try and help her get over all of this. Instead, he'd just grunted, and decided to focus more time on rehabilitating the limb.

One of the other things Katara had said after they had landed on whale tail island was, _I'm hungry._ With that she had left into the wood, and had just returned right now, with a shirt-hem full of nuts, berries and roots. "What's all this?" Zuko asked as she handed him some.

She glanced at him. "Food," she explained simply.

_Well, that's three things she's said now…_

Quite sure that the meager meal would do little to nothing to fill his stomach, he accepted it none the less. Refusing it might just stir up some argument from the waterbender across from him. She might not care at this point, but the Prince decided it was not worth the risk. Besides, he could not pretend he was not hungry. His stomach made sure of that.. They had not planned to be out this long, and had eaten most of their food the night after storming the patrol tower. The rest they had finished off on the flight here, to their destination.

Appa growled hungrily, and Katara patted his head. At least he had grass to eat. The beast may prefer hay, but there had been plenty of times in Zuko's travels that he'd wished he _could _eat grass. At least, thanks to Hakoda's training, he knew he'd never be that hungry again.

"So," Katara asked. "What's the plan?"

"What?" Zuko was taken back by her sudden decision to speak.

"Our plan," she repeated. "What next?"

"Oh, well… I suppose we find this Yan Ra person."

"That's it?" Her dead eyes looked at him disbelievingly.

"I'm not Sokka," the prince protested. "I don't just think up all your plans for you." Katara crossed her arms stiffly, and he sighed. Zuko honestly hadn't thought about it that much.

Go to Whale Tail.

Find Yan Ra.

End the madness.

It seemed simple enough in his mind. "This is a very small island. I saw a town in the center as we flew in. I guess, pretty much anyone there should know where he lives. We could just go… ask."

Katara nodded. "Let's go then." She turned back to Appa and set some stuff in his saddle. "Stay here, boy," she told him, patting his head once. "Watch our stuff. We'll be back before dark." Appa grunted. "If it rains, stay under the tree." Appa nuzzled her, an affectionate move that didn't seem to effect Katara much more than her obligatory pat of his head had.

Zuko watched her turn and walk away, noting the deep shadows under her eyes. "Katara, don't you need some… sleep…"

The pointless plea fell on the back of the waterbender's head as she pulled up her face covering and started for the center of the island.

* * *

Katara's feet felt like lead. Actually, her whole body did. She was weary, and dead tired. But she couldn't stop. As long as that man was alive, she couldn't sleep. It was more than just the dreams. It was the drive, the anxiety. It had reached a climactic level now. She felt like a hunter who'd found their prey. The intensity of it was too much for her. She just had to hope she found him before her strength gave out.

But still, somehow, she was outpacing Zuko. The prince was forced once again to take long strides in order to keep up with her, making full use of his taller legs. He hadn't said anything since the suggestion she get some sleep, but she could almost see the things he wasn't voicing in his eyes every time she looked at him.

So she didn't.

There was no need to look at him anyway. He was with her, that was all that mattered, and the fact that he didn't say anything meant that even if he didn't approve, he understood. Much as she hated it, he was the only one who did. So she didn't look at him. She just moved onward, with Zuko at heel.

When they reached the town, Zuko pulled his own face covering up, and Katara peered through the trees into the main street. "This is a town?" she asked, her voice disbelieving. In the dreary light of the stormy sky, the run down town looked even more pathetic. Only a few vendors were out, and only two stands actually appeared to be manned, both by extremely scrawny workers. Even fewer people appeared to be shopping. "I've seen more vital places in the colonies."

"This war hurts more people than just our enemies," Zuko stated dryly, stepping out past her.

Katara recalled her own experience with run down Fire Nation towns, and the painted lady guise she had back at the camp where Aang was. For the first time in a while, she felt her heart stir towards someone else's plight. But the familiar feeling seemed somehow too far away to hold on to for long. "I know."

Zuko glanced back at her, but she quickly wiped the sympathy from her face. "Who do we ask?" she questioned.

"Any of the vendors should know," Zuko acknowledged. "But, better if you ask them. My face is… slightly more memorable."

Katara nodded and lowered her bandanna before stepping out of the trees after Zuko. They moved up to the stand at the corner of the town, and Katara knocked on the wooden front. They could hear shouting inside the house behind it, dull and dreary as the town, and then a woman came out, hunched and soppy looking, like the rain had done her little good. "Can I help you?" she asked, eying Katara.

"I'd like to buy some food," she said simply, gesturing at the display. "Do you have any bread that's not… wet?"

The woman produced a hard looking roll from a basket behind the counter. "Could I interest you in a warm meat pie?" the woman offered, holding up a rather rancid looking bun, and making Katara wonder exactly what kind of meat was supposed to be in it.

"No," she denied quickly. "I'm afraid we don't have… the money for much right now."

"Isn't that the story of the world," the woman grumbled.

"But… I will take some of that cheese. It is goat-sheep?"

"Naw," the woman chewed the word. "It's from the cow-pig we gots us in the back. Still good though," she added when Katara eyed it distastefully.

"Some of that too then," Katara agreed.

"What brings you out to these parts?" the vendor asked as she sliced a the cheese with a big knife. "We don't get too many visitors here no more, specially afore a storm."

"We're looking for someone, actually." Katara watched the woman, but she didn't seem to have any suspicions, so the waterbender proceeded. "A man called Yan Ra."

"What's a pretty young girl like you doing looking for a washed up old rag like that, huh?" the woman asked, plunking down the food in front of Katara.

"He knew my mother," Katara stated coldly.

"Ah, so that gnarled old fool does have a few bastard kids then," she snorted as Zuko handed over some money, keeping his face turned pointedly away from her least she catch sight of his scar. "Well, you're outta luck if you want money or something from him. He's been a complete bum since his retirement gold from the army dried up. He lives with his grumpy old mother on the far side of the island. Ain't got no kids, no wife, nothin'."

"Where can I find him?" Katara asked.

"Actually," the woman admitted, "I saw him come into town just a bit ago." She leaned out of the stall to look down the dismal street. "There," she gestured. "At the end. The one with long hair and the wide jaw." As there were very, very few people on the street, Katara actually managed to spot him from that distance.

"That him?" Zuko asked, almost soundlessly.

"Can't tell," Katara replied, nearly as quiet.

The woman eyed the two of them. "Like I told you both, he ain't got no gold, even if he is your pap."

"That's not why we're here." The woman spat into a pot and Katara wrinkled her nose. "But thank you for the information anyway," she added as the vendor tucked away Zuko's coppers. "And the food." Katara was extremely tempted to through in a few extra coins, but then she remembered she'd claimed they were too short on money for meat pies, and allowed Zuko to tuck his purse away without comment.

But the woman seemed to appreciate the money she recieved anyway, and gave a chipped toothed smile as she tucked it away. Katara wondered unsparingly if Zuko hadn't slipped a bit extra in on his own. Whatever the reason, the vender seemed to decide she wasn't disgruntled with Katara and Zuko's secrets after all, she nodded politely. "Stay dry now, deary." The lady cackled as they left, in a way that reminded Katara distantly of Hama's voice.

Katara glanced at Zuko as they turned the corner into an alleyway. "I say we lay low until he leaves town. Then we follow him. When it's less conspicuous, we can confirm it's him, and then set a trap, since we know vaguely where he's headed."

Katara nodded, her eyes focused on the man at the end of the road. If that was him… If it was finally him… She still didn't know what she would do it if was, but she did know, she had to find him.

Her stomach grumbled loudly, and Zuko held out a slice of bread to her, but Katara waved it off. He didn't even tell her she had to eat. Perhaps he understood how horribly her stomach was writhing right now, how desperately she wanted this to happen. Right now she couldn't let anything come between her and that man. Her body almost shook she was so desperate for it.

Katara and Zuko slowly slunk towards the old man, taking refuge behind practically abandoned stands with withered fruit and rotting meats. Eventually they were close enough to tail to the man, and he appeared to be handing over some cash. Katara lifted her head cautiously over the edge of the stand, the wind whipping through her hair and beating forlornly against a wind chime hanging a few inches above her. The man had the stance of a veteran fighter, a poise she knew well. It reminded her strangely of the men in her own village, even of Master Pakku or her father. But there was something lacking from it, something her friends had that this poor creature didn't.

_It's probably that he's a murderous, backstabbing monster,_ she concluded angrily. But, without seeing his face, she couldn't be sure it was him. She leaned in closer, trying to get a glimpse of the man's face, when suddenly he turned towards them.

Katara ducked immediately down behind the wooden slats. "What happened?" Zuko hissed. "Did he see you?"

Katara peered cautiously back, but the man was tucking away his vegetables and heading out of the village. "I don't think so." Katara stood. "He's leaving."

Zuko nodded, and the two began tracking him.

* * *

Despite their best efforts to stay back, they had to get a good look at his face. It wouldn't do at all to be attacking innocents. Zuko know a misstep would just alert the real Yan Ra to their presence. So they waited, and tailed him.

Eventually patience paid off. The old man took a set of stone stairs down. These stairs wound around in such a way that the bottom steps could clearly be observed from the top. A platform had been formed there, where the rest of the steps cut down through the rocky terrain and out onto flatter surface, creating a perfect vantage point to spy on someone at the bottom without being seen themselves. Zuko ran quickly and quietly up to the ledge, motioning to Katara to join him. The girl followed just as soundlessly, scooting up to the edge and peering cautiously over.

"Hello?" the man demanded suddenly, and Katara ducked down, drawing immediately back towards Zuko. For a moment he was afraid they'd been caught. "Is someone there?" But, after a very tense minute for everyone, the sound of the man's shuffling footsteps began again, and Zuko allowed himself to breathe.

"Katara?" he prompted, dying to know himself.

"That was him," she whispered, her back to the prince. "That was the monster."

Her voice was steady, but he noticed her hand shook. He felt the same anticipation. After so long, yearning for this… How intense it must be to have justice in your grasp. His own mother was so far from being found, or avenged. But this was right here. He would make sure everything went right. "We'll get ahead of him," Zuko decided. "We'll set a trap and let him come to us."

Katara nodded, the waterbender in her understanding the rules of the hunt. But this hunt was far different than the one Zuko had been on with Sokka, and their prey was infinitely smarter. Climbing a tree wasn't going to be an option if things went wrong.

Rain began to fall, and Zuko was grateful. He and Katara could run in the grass on the side of the path and no one more than a few feet away could see them. Even the sound of their footsteps were muffled by the pounding rain drops of the storm that had chased them from the watchtower. It was in this manner that they passed the suspicious Yan Ra and found a place to set up ambush. There were a few large, leafy trees around, and some thick bushes, as well as a few sharp rocks, the rest of the area was open, grassy hills. Enough to make someone feel safe, but deceptively harboring enough places for attackers to hide.

Katara attached a string securely to a stone on one side of the path, about ankle high, then ducked around the corner of a larger rock on the opposite side of the path. When she pulled the wire tight, it was almost completely invisible in the misty rain, and Zuko was forcibly reminded of Mai's stealth tactics. As Katara crouched, black clad with rain around her, her face serious and focused, almost unreadable, the resemblance grew in his mind.

But there were distinct differences too. Mai faced the world with an uncaring attitude. Whatever similarities the girls had, Katara's emotions were so powerful at this very moment that even Zuko could feel them. They were as wild and untamable as the storm around them, and he felt drawn to them, consumed by them, like a moth to the flame. Being with Mai had never been like this. Katara's feelings... They were alive, like fire, and twice as deadly. Katara may be like a drawn arrow, but she wasn't released with nonchalance, but rather with certainty and anger so palpable it made the prince tremble with anticipation.

Finally, sweet justice would be found.

Zuko hid himself around a giant rocky mound as well, and the two waited, as tense as the string, for the man they knew was coming.

It seemed hours, and yet passed by so quickly Zuko could barely breathe. Katara didn't move once. He knew, because he stared at her the whole time. She just watched the path hungrily.

And then he was there.

A still suspicious Yan Ra moved into their line of sight, his eyes darting around cautiously. He was no victim. His years as a raider obviously told him where a good ambush sight would be, however friendly and normal it looked to the untrained eye. Zuko was sure now the older man _had_ caught a glimpse at them at least once earlier, and someone like him could never be too cautious. High rainking officers in the Fire Nation army often had enemies. He certainly had his guard up this afternoon.

The man drew nearer, and now Zuko could see his face. A wide jaw indeed, but not filled out any longer. In his prime, this man had probably been a force to be reckoned with, but now his shoulders were thin, and his arms muscled in a scrawny way that reminded Zuko of Sokka. Yet this was no growing boy, only a fading man. His wrinkled skin hung loosely over his face, and worry lines etched the man's brow. The market woman had been right. Washed up was the perfect term for this rain-drenched ex-commander.

An idea came to Zuko as the man proceeded cautiously towards their trap. He was afraid this Yan Ra would spot the wire and fail to trip it. Zuko was hesitant to attack when he didn't know any of Yan Ra's abilities. Did he have concealed weapons, or could he firebend? Was he all truly as washed up as he appeared, or did he still harbor a fighter's courage? Zuko had to know, because Katara had to succeed.

Closing his right hand around a pebble, he lobbed it with his healthy fingers across the path, and it struck a bush to the side of their prey, causing Yan Ra to jump violently and turn towards the sound. But his surprise turned quickly to an attack. As he landed, he spun on his heal, his basket of vegetables falling carelessly to the side of the path and spilling. As the man turned, flames leapt up through the rain, filling the clearing with blazing light, and he aimed them, closed fisted, straight towards the bush. "No body sneaks up on me without getting burned!" From the way the wet bush exploded in flames even the rain could not quench, Zuko knew the threat was not empty.

But at least he knew the man's abilities now.

As Yan Ra's suspicions faded, he bent over and picked up the basket, collecting the vegetables, and Zuko checked his swords in their sheath. As his right fingers fumbled on the hilt, he decided that using firebending against the firebender would be as good a tactic as any – it had worked on the Southern Raider's commander. It would work again now. He glanced at Katara. She still hadn't moved. But as Yan Ra turned to start up the path again, she pulled harder against her trip line, and her brows dropped, giving her face a steely look.

Two steps, and the man's ankle caught on it, slamming his face into the mud. As his basket tumbled from his grasp, Zuko leapt into action, seizing the moment.

It had begun.

* * *

Katara felt the trip wire snag against her as the man stumbled into it. Her eyes closed momentarily as she tugged, and she heard as much as felt the man hit the ground. As he face planted, Zuko spun from his hiding place, lighting the path with a second burst of flames.

Yan Ra cringed as the blast hit the earth inches from his face and stumbled away from the prince. Even with his face covering on, Katara could tell Zuko's features had twisted into the victoriously wicked smile he had often given her when he had been their enemy. He now believed he had the upper hand, and that he was incredibly close to something he had wanted for a long time. For once, Katara agreed. "We weren't behind the bush," he taunted the old man. "And I wouldn't try firebending again!"

The man cringed away from him as Katara stood. "Whoever you are, take my money – take whatever you want! I'll co-operate!"

But as the man cringed in the mud, begging for his life, Katara found she felt no sympathy for him. If he had fought, if he mocked her, she would have felt vindictive taking his life. All these years she had wondered what kind of monster had managed to kill her mother. She saw that terrifying eye over and over, the huge form of the brute between herself and her mother. This shrunken old man was denying her even the glory of a battle she now knew she would win. His pathetic cowering infuriated her even more, but she had been angry so long, she just felt more dead inside.

At least she wanted to hear him say it, to make sure he _knew _what he had done. There could be no mistake. Even though she knew it with every fiber of her being, she needed the monster to admit it himself. She needed to hear it.

Pulling away her mask, she revealed her face, knowing that her blue eyes were the single most defining thing she had at the moment. She hoped they were boring a hole through the wretched man's soul. "Do you know who I am?"

The man, Yan Ra, looked at her, unable to see clearly through his own fear and the rain. It had been years. _Still, he should know me! A waterbender. He killed enough of us…_ "No… I'm not sure…"

The rage inside her flared, and the dead feeling inside her grew with it. He couldn't deny it! He couldn't deny her, everything! "Oh, you better remember me like your life depends on it!" she shouted. She grabbed his shirt, ignoring Zuko as he reached out to warn her against it, and stuck her face right in his. She could see the smoldering brown eyes, the very same that had haunted her for years. "Why don't you take a closer look." Her own voice hissed in her ears.

"Yes…" he whispered. "Yes! I remember you now!" Her eyes narrowed, commanding him to continue. He could look away from her no more now than she could break his monstrous gaze. "You're the little water tribe girl… Your mother was the last waterbender."

"What!" Katara pushed him away from her, and Zuko stepped immediately between them again. "You killed her! You killed my mother. If she was a _waterbender, _why didn't she stop you?"

"I'm just telling you what she said!" the man cried, cringing away, though whether from Katara's rage or Zuko's scarred face it was unclear. "She tried to lie to me and tell me we had taken away all the waterbenders a long time ago, that none were left. But I had my sources. I _knew _there was one more left."

"Why would she tell you anything!" Katara shouted, stepping closer to Zuko, closer to the man.

"Because," Zuko realized, his own voice harboring tightly restrained anger, "if she didn't give him a name, he and his men would have destroyed your entire village until they found the bender. Isn't that right?"

Yan Ra winced as the prince barked the last order. "Who are you?" he asked, gazing into Zuko's face.

"I said, isn't that right?" Zuko demanded again.

The man shrunk away from him. "Yes. Yes, that's right. So she told me. She said she would tell us who the waterbender was only if we promised to leave the rest of the village in peace."

"And did you?" Zuko cut in.

"Of course!" Yan Ra protested, hiding from Zuko's gaze behind flailing arms. "If I hadn't, _she _wouldn't be standing there now, would she?" Katara's gaze only hardened as Yan Ra gestured at her. She needed to hear it, to have him say it. She wished Zuko would stop prodding him. She wished he would just _say _it! "Look, I had my orders! Kill the waterbender! The rest of the pathetic village was nothing to me."

She couldn't take it any more. The words burst from her mouth. "So why did you kill my mother!" Katara screamed, tears forming in her eyes, only to be washed away by the pouring rain.

"Because _she _was the waterbender, you silly girl!" the man barked back, finally finding some steel. "She told me so herself. She even surrendered to me, to spare your town! Which I did, after I killed her!"

Suddenly, he seemed to have realized what he'd said, and swallowed hard.

But Katara's tears were gone. She felt as she was standing on the edge of a cliff. She was past all fear or sorrow. Now there was only cold, raging justice. Her face was stony again. "No." Zuko glanced back at her as she took a defensive stance. "She lied to you. She was protecting the last waterbender." She understood it all now.

"What?" Yan Ra gasped. "Who?"

"ME!"

Katara could feel every drop of water falling from the sky. It was as if time had frozen around her. This moment was etched in her mind now, and she could feel it forming, like she every action she made was sinking down into her history. Like she had been building up to this exact second since she was born. She was beyond control; beyond desire to be controlled. Even Zuko backed away from her as her hands lifted. She wanted them to feel this timelessness too.

And so she stopped it.

Not the world, for that was beyond her ability. But the rain. Every drop froze, hanging in midair, unable to fall. All around them, for a good twenty feet in every direction, there was nothing but utter stillness, as if everything had stopped. Zuko pulled off his mask as he stared upward. Above them, rain splattered onto an invisible shield, the edge of her bending limits, and poured around them, surrounding them in a bubble of silence, apart from the world.

She could see Yan Ra's face pale.

This was the moment. The moment she had made. The moment she ended it all.

This was why she was a waterbender.

She would wait no more.

In one smooth motion, all the water gathering above them, all the drops trapped in her shield, water from the mud beneath them, the air around them, the plants below them, all of it, came to her. She could feel it all, and it jumped to serve her, anxious to avenge one of its own. It streamed through her fingers, and she felt it, almost alive, solidify into jagged, sharp edges, as broken as she felt, and as sharp as her rage.

The man, the murderer, the _monster _before her, must die.

He flung up his hands, and whimpered. Even the most evil cowered before their own deaths. And as he cringed, her mind shattered.

_Forgive him…_

Something inside her broke.

She wanted to kill him. She wanted him to die, to hear him plead and cry as he deserved, to watch his lifeblood drain away as he had watched her mother's.

But she couldn't. She couldn't.

And she hadn't.

The icicles had struck the ground all around him, and he had practically fainted from fear. But every icicle that might have struck a killing blow still hovered inches from his face and body. And she couldn't move them forward.

It was over. She had failed. Her body trembled, tired beyond the breaking point, and she let her arms drop. The icicles melted back to water, falling with a great splash all around the terrified man. She didn't look at Zuko. She didn't look at anything. She had failed.

_Curse you...Aang…_

"I did a bad thing!" Yan Ra shouted suddenly, pushing forward to his knees. "I know I did. And you deserve revenge! So… Why don't you take my mother? That would be fair!"

Katara wished she could summon the energy to be shocked, but somehow this man could debase himself no more in her eyes. "I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing. But now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you – nothing at all! You're pathetic and sad and empty."

"Please," he whimpered, bowing and sniveling.

"But as much as I hate you, I just can't do it!" Her voice broke as she admitted this out loud. "You're not worth it! You're not worth any of the hate I've been through – any of the anger I've felt! Nothing!" All drained out, she turned to leave.

"Katara!" Zuko's voice interrupted, and she remembered again that he was there. "Katara, that's it? We came all this way – that's it?" He sounded disappointed for some reason.

"That's it," she confirmed. "I never want to see him again."

"But… He killed your mother!" The accusation made Zuko's own voice tremble. "He killed her, and you're just going to walk away!"

"Who's mother is this about Zuko?!" she shouted. "Mine?...Or yours?"

The prince's jaw dropped, and for a minute she thought she'd gone too far. But then she realized, she'd hit the nail right on the head. The reason Zuko had stayed with her, had been so close, sharing in her anger and frustration, was because, in his own way, this had been about his mother too. Since they had first met, loosing their mothers to the war was the one thing they'd had in common. Now Katara was over it. However...Zuko…

"I'm sorry," she apologized. "I'm sorry I-"

But then Zuko did the last thing she'd expected of him. He turned his back on Yan Ra (who was currently mouthing his name in a shocked, soundless echo of Katara's words) and fell into her. His arms closed around her so suddenly she didn't know how he'd covered the distance, and he pulled her close. It wasn't like a lover would, in a way that would have made her suspicious of him again, but a hug that Sokka would give her, or her father. Or maybe more. It said he was with her, and that he understood. "It's okay." His words drifted down to her through the rain. "It's over."

And she realized it was. It was finally over.

Tears fell down her face again, and sank into Zuko's sopping shirt. But they weren't bitter any more, or painfully sad. Instead, she felt like she was finally letting go. It was as if an old friend was finally saying goodbye. It was not pleasant, but it was an ending.

There was no sadness. Not any more.

"She saved you," Zuko whispered as Katara's tears ebbed. "She saved her whole town."

"Yeah," Katara sniffled, pulling her face out of his shoulder. "I guess she did."

"Well… that's what mothers do, you know," he added, looking away awkwardly. "If you threaten their young… they bite you back."

Katara opened her mouth to say something, perhaps 'thank you' or 'we should go back' but she couldn't remember which because her eyes drifted over the prince's shoulder and what she saw drove all peaceful thoughts from her mind. Instead, a strangled, "Zuko, look out!" issued from her mouth as she pushed the prince sideways with all her strength.

Just when she'd thought the pathetic sap on the ground behind them couldn't sink any lower, Yan Ra had gained his feet, and found, somewhere on his person, a knife. It's long, curved hilt looked a perfect fit for his wicked, aged face, and he drove towards them with a maniacal expression. Whether he wanted to finish the job he'd started years ago and take out the last waterbender, or if he'd figured out Zuko's identity and planed to take out the prince for whatever rewards he might receive was unclear. Whatever his reasons, all Katara knew was that he was driving right towards them, and in seconds, one of them could be dead. And she so shoved Zuko with everything in her.

Unfortunately, all her strength barely knocked him back a step, him and his stupid bronzy, strength! But it was enough. The knife was no longer directed at him. Now Yan Ra was coming for her, and at least she was prepared.

She waved her hand and the water around his feet and soaking his body rushed to obey. He froze over solidly, and she knew before he could finish his strike, he'd be frozen in place.

In the same second that he froze, everything seemed to happen at once. Zuko stumbled back one step from her, registering the danger from Yan Ra almost immediately, having never put the opponent completely from his mind. Katara was dimly aware of the sound of his blades leaving their sheath, and the metallic ring they made as they sliced through air and rain in an arc, headed straight for the opponent.

And then she got everything she had wished for as her world exploded.


	34. Chapter 34:Ashes

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: i hope all of this isn't too much... this was one of my most challenging chapters to write yet. i had so much i wanted them to say, or do, so many ideas... i picked what i thought was best, and put in what i thought mattered, as well as trying to answer some of your requests not to ignore our boiling rock stuff (which i feel is the foundation of their relationship, but a touchy to talk about subject) and made sure to include it... plus, i'm not a very morbid person, so i'll leave the serious stuff to the big man (good luck trombe!)  
_

**Trombe: So people chapter 34...can't believe we're this far into it and yet...were still so far from the conclusion. Yeah for those who figured out where the whole southern raiders was going to end up on...good for you. It wasn't like we were trying to make it hard for people to understand. We just felt that this is the best interpretation of the southern raiders that we had going.  
**

_artsyelric: dude, trombs, i miss you so much - no joke. like all we ever talk about anymore is this story, and even then i have to practically... well, beg you to call me! boo... guess i'm grateful we're writing this in the end, or else we'd prolly never talk any more, huh? actually, i suppose that thought's depressing enough to get me through writing this! all right... deep breath - here we go!_

**Trombe: You sound so needy....I hate needy women.**

_artsyelric: hey, you know i'm a controlling, amazon of a bitch normally - allow me a moment of whining!_

_ps, trombs, for all you speak of the 'greater good', i really think you should read harry potter and the deathly hallows XDD it's not nearly as childish as the rest of the books. you share a lot in common with the dumbledore/grindevald complex (not the gay part, the greater good part). they focus on the 'greater good' concept as well... just don't start on 'might makes right' or i will make you read it!  
_

**

* * *

**

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 34: Ashes **

* * *

When had Katara brushed him aside?

How had the knife wielding Yan Ra closed so much distance between them?

Why did it seem even the rain's unrelenting show seemed to slow, as if time itself had dropped to a crawl?**  
**

Things were happening too fast for the prince to contemplate.

Fortunately, his body still acted.

Somewhat shocked that the blue eyed girl was still trying to save him, he felt the all too familiar sense of fear leap up in his mind, and all at once his thoughts flowed out. He promised to keep her safe!

Katara,_ his _Katara, was in danger.

Without even stopping to think about his still healing burn, he closed his hands about his swords. Zuko ignored from his sight the stance Katara took and the ice that was slowly creeping up from Yan Ra's legs. In a single motion the twin blades rang clear from their sheathed slumber. The swords whistled as they arced and crossed together in a wide sweeping motion. In a flash Yan Ra's eyes went white, his jaw wide open in disbelief. Blood slowly seeped from his midsection and neck.

The red trickle slowly became a crimson flow.

A simultaneous hot-cold feeling tingled Zuko's spine.

A feeling that came with the familiar action of killing.

Yan Ra's pale eyes watched him with a pleading expression. His mouth opened only to gurgle his sentence, his red life force bleeding from it as well.

Zuko did not look away.

He could not even if he had wanted too. His aim was clean. Yan Ra was going to die in a matter of seconds.

Now all that was left was for the body to drop.

But as Yan Ra's eyes rolled back into his head and his body went limp as death overcame it, he didn't fall to the ground, but rather remained rooted upright. Warm blood trickled in with the rain as Zuko realized he was frozen in place, completely imprisoned by Katara's ice bending.

Behind Zuko, Katara screamed.

* * *

Blood.

There was blood everywhere. It's dark, red color consumed her vision. The rich, iron-like smell filled her nose. The thick, oozing feel of it splattered her skin, warm to the touch, and was washed away by the pounding rain.

But she could still feel it on her. She could still almost taste it, there was so much.

Yan Ra made a strangled sound and his arms went limp. All around him, the blood was seeping away, melting down him, mingling with her ice, as if trying to free his body from her confines.

Zuko's body was between them now, the rain plastering his hair thickly to his head as he followed through with his strike. Katara didn't understand where he came from, or why he was disrupting her view. But despite his presence, nothing could truly block the site in front of her. The only thing she could see was the corpse. His eyes stared blankly forward, his jaw hanging stupidly. The way he was staring at her, surprise and hatred still etched across his face, terrified her.

His knife hit the ground.

It was what she had wanted.

Yan Ra, the monster who had stolen her mother, was dead.

It was what she had _wanted!_

It was why she was here.

It was her fault…

Her mind seemed to split her from herself. She drifted through the horror, as if detached, and was consumed by the vision of blood, by the site of the dying man, which seemed to move as if time had practically stopped. She still hadn't managed to draw a single breath yet, though somehow it seemed as if she had been stuck in this terror for years. Part of her mind, the part in reality, seemed to say there was barely any blood, that she was overreacting, that it wasn't her fault. But the other part of her mind, the one she could actually hear right now, was in shock, and because of it all she could see, all that existed, was blood. Blood and death.

The world was still moving at a crawling pace. Air slowly filled her lungs, bringing with it the iron smell mingling with the rain. Her throat burned. For some reason she could see every detail, every motion in the scene around her, sharp, crisp, and completely unforgettable. She wondered, dimly, if this was still real. Somewhere outside her thoughts, outside the strange, distance place her mind had gone to, she heard herself screaming. That must be why her throat stung so. Her bending stopped. The ice around Yan Ra melted away, and the body dropped lifelessly to the ground, laying twisted on the rain soaked earth.

Now someone's arms were around her. They were pulling her close, holding her against a warm, living body, blocking everything so she couldn't see. Big, black clad shoulders monopolized her vision. But she knew it was still there. The shocked part of her mind could still see it, burned into her retina, and she knew it was there. Just past these strong arms was the still bleeding body of the man she had killed.

She had held him down, frozen completely still, while those blades tore through him.

It was her fault…

"Katara..."

The sound of her name cut through the echoing mist around her. She felt as if she had drifted far away from the world, like the voice was coming to her from miles away. But it wasn't. She knew it was Zuko's voice, and she knew his face was just inches away, even though she was barely aware of his presence. At least, the sane part of her mind knew.

"Katara, Are you alright?"

She forced herself to focus on that voice as hard as she could, and, in a rush, she felt reality flood back around her. Cold rain thundered over her, and Zuko's wet body was wrapped around hers. She wanted to push him away – a man had just died right in front of them! – but her arms were pinned at her side by his.

Pinned there, just like how she had held the man unmoving while he died.

Her chest hurt. She willed herself to shove away from Zuko, to yell at him to let go of her, but the words were as stuck in her throat as her arms were at her sides. They burned her chest, trying to get out, and somehow, with them stuck there, with his arms squeezing her too tightly, she couldn't breathe.

She began to gasp and choke, and he let go of her, grabbing her shoulders instead. As he released the pressure, she felt herself start to calm down. Struggling to keep consciousness, Katara forced herself to breathe properly. "What… What happened?" she asked, as if perhaps Zuko might tell her something other than what she already knew, as if he might tell her she hadn't just killed someone.

Zuko's eyes slid to the side, as if glancing behind himself, then focused on hers again. "...I killed him," he reported.

"You killed him?" _No, no that's not right. _I _killed him, I'm sure of it!_

But another voice whispered darkly to her deep inside. _Whose blades sliced him open?_

Zuko couldn't hear her thoughts, only her question. So he nodded plainly. "Yes. He tried to attack you, and I killed him. I'll ask you again Katara, are you all-"

"You killed him."

Zuko's face looked confused now. "Yes, Katara, I already told you; he's gone. You saw it! What's wrong with you?"

But the realization had hit her now. Zuko had just killed that man. His swords had leaped faster than instinct and sliced through a man whose name he knew. Worse, he had done it like it didn't even matter, like it was normal. Even now, the firebender didn't seem to care about what he had done.

Katara's eyes burned as she tried to fight off the tears trying to escape her.

He was just like the rest of his country after all.

"You killed him!" she screamed, finally finding her strength. She pushed roughly at his shoulders, though he did not release her - damn him. He'd barely moved an inch. "You murdered him!" she persisted desperately. "I had already stopped him, and you just killed him!"

Zuko's face blanched for a second, then grew serious. "Katara, what's wrong with you? It's not like this is the first man you've killed."

Everything seemed to stop.

She could feel her heart pounding madly in her chest. "Is… is that what you think of me?" Her voice was barely a whisper, and she was losing control of her breathing again.

Now Zuko's eyes widened, his face going slack. "You… haven't?" His tongue darted out to wet his lips, despite the rain. "Katara, you've never killed someone?"

She shook her head vigorously.

"But, surely… You've seen plenty of death!" he protested, his voice raising slightly. "You've been traveling with the Avatar! You're a healer… You must have seen many people die!"

"Not like that," she managed around her panting. "Not with all that blood… Not while I was holding them… Not because of me…" The words were starting to choke her again, and she couldn't get them out.

Zuko let go of her with one hand to run it through his hair. "What are you talking about, Katara? It must look like this when Sokka kills someone…" His voice stopped as she shook her head again. "You're telling me Sokka never killed anyone either?" he demanded, and she continued her denial. "You've been through all this war and never… not even with… Aang! Aang must have killed-"

"No!" the word came out strangled as she shook her head violently. "None of us! Nobody! We never… killed…"

And then she was hyperventilating. Her chest was burning as her heart thundered in her chest, and her brain was dimming up. She gasped for air, sucked it in, but she couldn't get enough. Her body began to shake again.

"Okay!" Zuko shouted, his hand returning to her shoulder. He was squeezing as he held her up. "Okay, I get it. Stop this." Didn't he understand she was trying? It was as if time was coming at her too fast now, to make up for how slow it had gone before, and it was crushing her. Before it was impossible to stop thinking, now she couldn't process a thought to save her life. It was too much. There was too much happening and not enough air - never enough air! "Katara, breathe. Look at me - focus on me! - and just breathe." The voice cracked at her, and her eyes met a sharp, golden gaze, her body trembling now, without air. But his eyes, his voice, commanded, thinking for her, and she obeyed. "Breathe with me for a minute, all right? In… and out… In… and out… Deeply… Just focus on the breathing… In… and out…"

Slowly, she felt herself calming down. The rain felt chilly again, and her hands were still shaking, but when she breathed liked that, slowly, the burning in her chest decreased. Soon, she was breathing normally again, and the gentle orders the prince was giving her changed. She let Zuko steer her out of the middle of the road and settle her behind a rock. "Stay here," came the firm command. "Just stay here for a minute and keep breathing for me, understand?" She nodded, if just to get his hands off her. "I'll be back."

His hands, his bloodstained hands, left her shoulders, and he moved around the rock, back to the dead man. He was gone.

Katara let her head slip forward into her knees and cried. She cried like she hadn't cried since she was a child. She cried every tear her mother's death had deserved, until she couldn't cry any more. It was over – it was finally over!

So why did it still hurt so bad?

* * *

His blood burned.

No, it more than burned. It boiled. Thoughts stampeded through his head in a thundering chaos, each pounding blow more devastating than the last. He had killed Yan Ra… Katara had never killed anyone… Aang had never killed anyone!

He was the only one, the only one who...

And now she knew it.

Dead eyes started up at him in mockery as the rain water poured down the empty face like tears. Zuko's fists clenched tightly at his side, and he could feel his nails biting into the half healed skin there. He let his anger pound through it, reveling in the feel of it, the way it burned away everything else. When he was angry, he didn't have to think clearly. Anger made pain surreal.

Embracing that anger which he had denied himself for so long, he let fire jump to his will. It burned in his hands, a mirror of the emotions twisting wildly inside him. He smashed it into one of the large boulders lining the path. Part of it blew right off the rest of the rock, tumbling to the wet earth with a splash. But it wasn't enough. The rage was still there. _Who are you angry at, Zuko? _The words echoed in his head, and he knew the answer this time. He knew it, but it only made him madder.

There was no one to be mad at besides himself. There never had been.

But there was the rock, the boulder, half crushed from his first release. And there was still the anger, live, vivid, and stronger than thought. So, he stopped thinking, and raged instead. He continued to pound away, until the boulder chipped and eventually crumbled completely under the siege of Zuko's wrath. Again and again he let his fire storm across it until the rock was beaten to nothing but smaller pieces, large enough for a single man to lift.

But like all things, an end eventually came... Even the fiercest fire cannot burn under the siege of countless rain drops.

And when the fire died, so did his rage.

He felt exhausted, burnt out; just like his firebending. Since he had let the rage take him so strongly, he now felt empty. All the emotions had gone from him, consumed in the rage he normally held at bay. It was eerie, as always, though not entirely unpleasant.

At least he could think straight again.

And think is exactly what he did as he returned for the body. Yan Ra's eyes gazed up at the prince, as blank and empty as he felt now. Zuko dragged the body through the muddy path and over to the destroyed stone. He lay it there, on the side of the road, and began stacking the crumbled pieces of rock together. His burnt hand would sometimes twinge as he strove to lift heavier pieces. He did not mind the pain. It distracted him from the emotional numb he was feeling. Zuko always found it easier to think whenever his hands were tasked with something.

He understood so many things differently now. The first was Aang. Why he did not see it before he could not say. Honestly, he couldn't really picture the boy actually ever killing someone, not if he really thought about it. Wasn't he the one who had just called Aang a goodie-goodie and a twelve-year-old master of holiness just a few mornings before? Avatar or not, the boy was twelve, and it was showing now, oh so clearly.

As Zuko continued to stack the stones, his mind turned to other Fire Nation soldiers he had lost in the past. Duyi, Aiguo and Cheng Lei… Xiobo… and then Hui Zhong… even Captain Jian Wei… They were all men he had lost chasing the Avatar, deaths he had always laid at the feet of his once enemy. But one could only lie to one's self for so long before he begins to see the reality of the world. The Avatar was not responsible for the demise of those men. Not directly at least. The deaths of his men were his own responsibility, and Aang had never intentionally killed even one of them.

They had died because they had followed their prince, not because they had fought the Avatar.

He grunted heavily as he deposited another stone onto the mound he was slowly forming. It was all so obvious now! But how in the world was he to pit a child like Aang, who had never killed, who thought anger was one step shy of outright sin, against the blood thirsty monster he knew his father to be? Suddenly it seemed as if all that stood between the world and utter destruction by fire was a thin veil of values upheld by the last tiny monk and an over-emotional waterbender.

War.

They were in a war in which one side had chosen the moral high ground.

Somehow, Zuko didn't think it would be enough to stop the Fire Lord.

How many people would see through his father's boldly spoken lies and instead believe the wistful ranting of a fourteen-year-old girl?

Perhaps only one prince.

And what could he do?

The second thing that Zuko had realized now was that he truly had gone into this wild hunt with Katara without understanding what he was doing. It took a pleading glance from her to make him realize that a part of him was in this for himself. Revenge for the disappearance of his own mother.

He hadn't known then, that she was bloodless.

When they started this, his had believed he was doing her a favor, that he understood her where no one else did, that she needed him.

Another glorious lie.

For a while Katara had been so focused and hateful that he had been able to relate to her, to pull her away from Aang. He saw now that he had been excited about that. He had dragged her down to his level, whether she wanted to be there or not, out of pure desire to have a familiar connection with her.

But Katara didn't belong down there. Katara was someone who could make a prison a place of honor, or a banishment a cause for pride. Creatures as rare as her were usually fragile, and Zuko realized now he had almost broken her.

The shame of it all sapped away at his strength.

Most of the truly beautiful things in life were like that. Dragon-flies, for instance, with their brightly colored scales and mesh like wings. You could stare at them all day. But if you tried to grab one, like Azula so often had, its wings would break, and its body would be squashed. He began to feel now that Katara might be like that for him. She was a light he could look at, but never reach. He had felt drawn to her earlier, like a moth to a flame, and just like that moth who flew towards the fire, if he got too close he knew he would be burned. But he couldn't pull her down to him either. If he tore her from the sky and made her live in his darkness, it would be just as fatal for her as burning would be for him.

They were simply from two different worlds.

He stopped, abruptly, and noticed that there were no more stones. He had lain them all out, flat and straight, onto a good sized bed, large enough to hold a full grown man. Or a body.

Nodding to himself at his work, Zuko knocked one final stone into place with his toe before placing Yan Ra's body on the mound. Once the man was laying completely on the stones, the prince stepped back. He dropped to one knee, the opposite fist on the ground, and knew this was the part where a prayer should be said for the man. But what was there to say? The only things he knew of the man were only out of what he just recently discovered. What eulogy would best describe a man who was willing to trade his own mother for his pathetic life? What honor was given to a man who had been given mercy only to spit at it? Strangely he felt he could hear what the fire priest would have said.

_Yan Ra, Honorable Son of Fire..._

"You're a despicable man..." Zuko whispered.

_You, who served your country diligently and with unwavering loyalty..._

"You followed orders without question."

_You, who led your men to victory against those that would harm our nation..._

"You raided against innocent people."

_You, who gave his life in the service for the greater good..._

"You took a mother from her own children."

_May you find eternal peace in the afterlife..._

"I hope you never find peace."

Sighing, he decided against the prayer. He was sure there was a special place in the afterlife for those who desecrated and spoke ill of the dead.

Instead, he settled for ambiguously thanking the man quietly for his years of service to his country, and hoped that, somehow, he wasn't thanking him for killing Katara's mother.

Zuko then stood and closed the man's eyes. "From Fire we were born," he spoke the traditional farewell. "To ashes may we return. May your life burn on forever, as part of all our Eternal Flame."

As he lit the funeral pyre with a burst of firebending, the words he had spoken seemed to sink in. The speech made so much more sense to Zuko now that he had visited the masters, now that he knew how full of life fire truly was. It was as if they were making their dead friends a part of life forever, rather than simply destroying their bodies in fire. Zuko didn't know how much he thought Yan Ra deserved to be a part of their Eternal Flame, but he supposed, after everything else, he wasn't one to judge. This was the death rite every Fire Nation soldier deserved, or at least the best Zuko could do in the circumstances. As this man's prince, and his executioner, Zuko felt he owed at least this courtesy.

Zuko held the flames, despite the rain, consuming everything the man was once. It was an odd feeling. The warmth of the flame and the cold kisses the raindrops gave him contradicted his senses. Around the corner, he saw a teary-eyed Katara watching, reflected fire dancing across the deep blue eyes. He let the flames die, stopping the stream from his hands and allowing the rest fizzle out in the rain, before he turned to her. She blinked up at him slowly. "You burned him?" she asked, her voice thick.

"It's how my people are buried," Zuko explained.

"So, you buried him then?"

Zuko nodded. "Let someone better than me judge his fate in the Spirit World."

Katara's eyes glazed again. "Then I hope the spirits judge him wisely." From the inflection, Zuko thought her 'wisely' might be equivalent to his 'harshly', and he understood.

"There's nothing left to do here," he said, picking up Yan Ra's dropped basket and fruit. "Let's go back."

Katara nodded and came to join him, looking like she didn't want to. He reached out to place a hand on her shoulder and she drew back sharply. "Don't... don't touch me," she warned, and he must have looked more surprised than he meant to because her face fell at his reaction. "I just don't want to be… Not right now, all right?"

Zuko just nodded and brushed past her, starting the long trek back to where they'd left Appa with a weary, nearly dead on her feet Katara trudging along behind.

* * *

Katara sat with her legs pulled up to her chin, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees in what she hoped could be mistaken for an attempted to stay warm. She was freezing after all. Waving her hand absently above herself, she adjusted the leafy covering she had built around the small campground.

At first she had used ice to create protection from the storm, but when that started to melt and drip, it was even worse than the rain, since it was frigid, so eventually she'd decided to try her hand at vinebending, like she'd seen the swampbenders do. The tree above them could provide the perfect protection, she was sure, if it could just be coaxed into the right shape. Now that she'd master bloodbending, moving the plants was much easier than it had once been, though there were still a few holes in her coverage to show her inexperience, and the similarity to her newest art had left a foul taste in her mouth.

This taste was not diminished in the slightest by the form sitting across from her, prodding his fire with a shiver.

Zuko.

She sighed. She was too tired to wrap her mind fully around the events of the last few days; in fact, she was too tired to even try and hate him any more. Now she just contemplated her traveling companion and tried to formulate some kind of explanation for the odd way she behaved towards him.

He was a killer and traitor, son of the greatest enemy they had left to fight, and someone who had hurt her personally before.

But… she didn't hate him. Maybe it was weak and pathetic of her, maybe Hama was right, and she didn't have what it took to make it in this world, but she did not hate him. After Yan Ra, she didn't ever want to hate anyone again.

However, that did not mean she liked him either.

"Katara," his voice cut into her thoughts in an overly familiar manner. "You should eat."

"What are you," she snapped, "my mother?" She bit her lip as the words left her mouth, not even having thought about them first, and he glanced away, that same, stupid, hurt look on his face she had seen back on the road. He covered it quickly again behind that stern mask of his, but she had seen it, whether he wanted her to or not. "I'm sorry," she said quickly, feeling bad. "I'm just…"

"Tired." She looked back up at him as he finished her sentence, and nodded.

"Exhausted," she agreed, leaning back into the harsh bark trunk of the tree. "But… I'm also glad."

"Glad?" he repeated rather dully, pulling out that knife Hama had turned on him as he began to slice into the bread, working to keep it out of any drips.

"Yeah, I'm glad that it's over. That all of this… hurt… is finally over. Maybe… Maybe it's not how Mom would have wanted things, but…" She shrugged. "I'm proud that I chose not to kill him, but at the same time," she took a deep breath, "...I am happy that he's gone."

Zuko, surprisingly, nodded. "I understand. And… I'm sorry, that I killed him."

"Does it make me a bad person?" Katara asked quickly, having to give voice to the rising doubt within herself. Zuko frowned, and she realized she hadn't made it very clear. "That I wanted him to die," she elaborated. "That I'm happy he's dead. Does that make me a bad person?"

"You're asking _me_ what makes someone bad?" Zuko's tone was somewhat incredulous, but Katara just nodded, so he sliced himself a piece of the bread and sat down next to her, his back against the tree, and his long legs stretching far past hers. "I don't think so," he decided after a minute.

"Why?" she asked, sure that with the time he took to answer, he must have a reason.

"Because," he answered plainly. "When it came right down to it, you didn't take his life."

"I couldn't," she almost cried. "I wanted to, _so _badly, and I just… I wasn't strong enough…"

"Uncle told me once that strength comes in many different forms." Zuko was rolling the knife over in his hands as he spoke, and Katara averted her eyes, unwilling to gaze on a blade he held again this soon. "I think, perhaps, you were far stronger today than I ever could have been."

"So, not killing him… made me strong?" This didn't quite seem to make as much sense to her as it apparently did to Zuko.

But the prince nodded. "It's… much easier than you would think to kill someone. To give into our own frustrations and hate, and just… kill. But, if you did that then you'd be just like my father and the rest of my family. Aang…" Zuko nodded his head firmly as if forcing himself to continue. "Aang was right. You took a much harder path."

"Lotta good it did me," Katara sniffed.

Zuko blinked at her, as if surprised. "Isn't that exactly what this is about?" he said suddenly, his words rushing together now, no longer coolly planned. "About the fact that you're so…" he averted his eyes as his voice faded to nearly nothing, "...good."

Katara glanced over at him, and realized that Zuko's face was disturbingly red. _He's blushing, _she realized. _Well, either that, or he's finally gotten a fever._ However, she was pretty sure he wasn't sick just yet. "You think I'm good?"

"I _know _you're good," he repeated more firmly. His words sounded more put together again, in fact, he seemed to be steeling himself for something, and Katara got nervous for a moment. The last time he had built himself up like this, he had kissed her. She didn't want a repeat of _that _particular event, no matter how… She felt her own face redden now, and quickly stopped thinking of it. "Listen, Katara, I know you're good, because you have to be. I spent, well, most of my life, believing that I was fighting for something good, for something right. But I was always unhappy. Even when I was with my family, they did things that… well, that I knew _weren't _in the right, not in the slightest. But I stayed, I wanted to make them proud of me, because I thought that was what I was born to do.

"It wasn't until I met you, down in the caverns of Ba Sing Se, that I finally understood how wrong everything they did had been. I'd been seeing it, slowly, but it all hit me at once when I realized what a virtuous person truly looked like. It was you. Not Azula, or my father, but you. That's why I wanted to be good – why I _know _you're good."

Katara snorted. She didn't mean to trod on the prince's obviously heartfelt story, but there was just one little problem. "If you knew that...why did you let it happen? Why did you let Azula do that to Aang? Why didn't you help us?" Bitterness tainted her voice against her will.

"I didn't… I couldn't be… good… just like that. I'm not…" He swallowed, trying to find the words. "I couldn't be someone like you, so… I ran away. I went back to Azula, and my father, because at least I knew how to deal with them, how to live there. I'd wanted so long to be accepted by them, and I guess… maybe I was a bit… afraid… of trying to be good, and… of failing."

"So then why did you come back?"

"Because," Zuko stuttered. "Because I found out… certain things… and mostly because I realized I wasn't happy there. I got everything I'd always wanted from them, and I wasn't happy. What I truly wanted, was to be someone _you _would be proud of."

"Me?" Katara felt as if her voice was nothing but air.

Zuko nodded. "My whole life, I tried to see past my faults but I wound up doing so many bad things. But after everything... especially after, you know, the Boiling Rock, I came to know you. So I wanted to be someone who could stand next to you, who could be counted as your friend. I felt like… No, I feel like if I can do that, then I'll be someone good. That's why I don't want you just accept me out of guilt. I want to prove myself to you, and I'll do whatever it takes. I swear, Katara."

She swallowed. Hard. "I think… you have an extremely inflated opinion of me."

"I don't," Zuko denied. "I thought that all before I even had any kind of… feelings… for you. That's why I helped you out back in the Boiling Rock. And that, unfortunately, is why I'm with you now."

Katara's mind felt blown, completely and totally wiped blank. It was just so much… To think that someone wanted to stand by her as strongly as she felt the need to stand with Aang… Her mind groped and eventually found something plausible to say. "Unfortunately?"

"I goaded you into this," he spoke suddenly. "Aang tried to tell us not to, but… back on the road, when you asked whose mother this was about…" Golden eyes turned to her sharply, and she felt, for a moment, as if they had pierced her, sharper than his knife ever could have. "...It was about yours the whole time. I'm sorry if I made it seem otherwise."

Katara looked away. This conversation was… well, it was too much. Especially right now, when she was so... drained. She felt as if Zuko's admiration for her was completely misplaced. She had just made a huge fool of herself, and the person she had taken everything out on, had shown all her worst sides to, was now praising her as if she were an ideal person. While she felt her self confidence being somewhat restored, she also felt very strange, awkward about the whole thing, and completely undeserving. She almost wished he would just go back to his stoic silence again. Or maybe that they would start arguing, just to end the whole unnerving subject. But arguing with Zuko wouldn't change anything. Arguing with Zuko never changed much.

However... He _had _been being honest with her. Finally. Maybe she could still get something worthwhile out of this horrible day.

With that in mind, she stashed away all her desire to put an end to the awkward conversation. If he was finally being honest, she wanted to talk to him, not fight. "Thank you," she said instead, as solemnly as she could. "And… I'm sorry."

Zuko's eyebrow twitched in what would have been an extremely animated expression from anyone else. "For what?" he asked.

"For dragging you along, and for shouting at you and… and for not liking you, the same way you like me."

Yes, now he was definitely red. "You don't have to… I mean, it's not like I… you…" He gave up exasperatedly and ran his hands through his hair in what was now becoming a familiar gesture to Katara. "I'm no good at this… Katara, you don't have to like me back. I just… I wanted to be honest with you, and I wanted to know – I still want to know – if… well, if we even have a chance."

"Zuko, I don't think I'm anywhere near of sound enough mind to give you a truthful answer to that right now." It was true. She felt nearly brain dead, emotionally drained, extremely weary and sleepy, plus ultimately overwhelmed to hear how this person she had known for almost a year now as a stranger felt about her personally. Besides, she didn't want to go all soft and lead the poor prince on and then wake up refreshed and regret it any more than she wanted to accidentally crush him because she was too tired for civility. She decided on something both praising, and a sharp reminder against them. "But… I do think Mai is lucky to have you." She hoped it wasn't too cold.

Zuko seemed to take the comment for exactly what it was, gentle refusal, processing it for a moment, and then nodding. "Well," he decided, crossing his arms stiffly as he leaned back against the tree they were sharing. "At least you don't hate me anymore."

"Of course I don't _hate _you," Katara grumped quickly, though she knew her actions lately had been quite contrary to her words now. "I try not to _hate _anyone!"

He opened on eye to glance at her through his sopping bangs. "That's what your brother said too. Or attempted to say, anyway…"

Katara flushed again, now about her own behavior. "I don't hate you, Zuko," she insisted. "I just… there are some things about you I really don't like."

"Yeah? Like what?"

Katara opened her mouth once without making a sound, somewhat surprised at the prince's answer. Then she closed it and thought of an example. "You know what I don't like about you, Zuko?" she asked rhetorically. "I don't like how you think that you can fix everything just by being stronger."

"What?" he roared, immediately astounded.

"You do!" Katara insisted. "You mess up somewhere, and then you come back to ask how you can 'make it up' this time, as if just by being stronger today you can undo something from yesterday."

"That's… that's ridiculous."

"All right," she dismissed, trying to find a way to explain how she meant it. "Then how about… how you don't think anything you have to say matters, and that no one would want to follow you after all your mistakes, so instead you decide that you're going to be the strong one and take all of my beatings for me, while I do all the work."

"You're saying I was wrong to-"

"No I'm not." Katara flushed again. "What you did was very brave and noble, and… well I appreciate it a lot, but there are other ways to fight besides flexing your muscles or offering up your back."

Zuko was just gaping at her now.

Katara pressed forward in his silence, anxious to find an example that _didn't _have to do with the touchy Boiling Rock. "Um... like how you don't want to kill your own father, no matter that you believe he deserves it, so you come here to be strong and support Aang instead. Or, how you let Azula hit Aang in Ba Sing Se, so now you plan to be strong enough to take her one on one in every fight, regardless of your own risks, just to keep her away from Aang. How about you not knowing how to make peace with me, and instead deciding to be strong enough to let me take everything out on you rather than-"

"Okay, okay!" Zuko cut her off. "I get it."

"I'm not saying it's a bad thing at all," Katara continued. "Strength is a very admirable quality. What I don't like is that you feel like it's the only quality you have. You're so strong, you've built up this wall around you, and every time something hurts you, or you mess up, you just force yourself to be stronger, and move on."

"Why do you care?" He glanced at her from beneath his dark, dripping bangs, and she got the impression she'd backed him into a corner.

"Because..." Katara sighed, trying to put words to exactly why she did care without making it sound too... personal, though in truth it actually was. Katara, being Katara, existed to deal with people on a personal level. She craved it, inspired it, and couldn't help it. So she bit her lip and pressed on. "Becuase I've seen what you're like without all that protection. Only glimpses, rare moments, but I've seen it." Zuko looked at her doubtfully and she frowned at him. "When I ran into you in the tea house," she reported. "And when you first came back to us from your father's side - I think, that might have been real." That one earned her an angry look, but she pressed on. "When you talked to me about your family after I bloodbent...I thougt for sure that was the real you."

"Don't think you know everything about me from a few out of control moments," Zuko grumbled.

"That's exactly it though," Katara emphasized. "I don't like how you always have to be strong, in control, to keep me from knowing you. Sometimes you just have to let it out."

"I don't need codling-"

"Like at the Boiling Rock."

The sentence hung in the air, and Zuko winced. "Well, I apologize for making such a fool of myself then. I didn't realize it was so troublesome for you!"

"That's not it, and you know it," Katara interjected. "I thought you were very heroic, and even lately... well, it's been... nice... to have someone to depend on. But you can't be strong all the time. Sometimes you have to let go, and just be Zuko, right? What I don't like is how you hide that person from us, all the time. Are you too strong to admit when you need help?"

"You don't like it when I take care of myself?"

"Now you just sound like Toph." Katara huffed before trying again."I don't like it, Zuko, when you make it hard for anyone to get to know you, to trust you. You've become so strong that you can't be anything other than that. But you're not an iron fortress, you know? You're a seventeen-year-old boy. You might make more friends if you loosen up a bit."

"I have been trying," Zuko snapped at her.

"Hey, you're the one who asked," Katara defended her assault on him. "I'm just telling you."

"In, like... a million words." Katara made a disgruntled sound and crossed her arms testily below her breasts. For a moment she thought Zuko stilled planned to argue, but then he just turned away. His golden eyes darted back and forth for a short while, skimming the leaf strewn ground. Eventually, though they grew still and he nodded to himself, in apparent understanding. "Fine," he accepted. "So... What else?"

"What?"

"What else don't you like about me?" he repeated slower.

"Oh, um…" Despite how much Katara felt she didn't like about him, it was hard to tie it down to one particular thing, and she was unsure that the only thing cropping up in her mind would be well received by the already talked-to-death prince. When she didn't answer he rolled his head on the trunk and raised an eyebrow at her, as if questioning if she could even think of anything else. _Fine, he wants to hear it that bad?_ she decided. _I'll let him have it!_ "I don't like how everything about you is either a lie or a secret."

He pushed back upright sharply. "I haven't lied to you guys once!"

"Maybe, but it's really hard for us to know if you have or not," Katara provided. "Honestly, I know next to nothing about you besides that you're the Fire Prince, and you chased us around for years in order to try and catch Aang, which has something to do with restoring your honor. You've said you were banished, though never why or how, you have a scar no one knows the origins of, a missing mother you've never explained, changed sides like… at least twice now, or maybe more according to Aang-"

"So?"

"So," Katara finished, a bit flustered. "I hardly know what to believe about you, do I? You could rescue us from a mercenary one minute, and tell us you hired him the next!"

For a moment, Zuko seemed to struggle with himself, as if having some kind of inward argument. "Fine," he said suddenly, slumping back into the tree. "Tell me what you want to know."

"I'm… sorry?" Katara shook her head in confusion.

"Ask me something, anything, and I'll tell you as honestly as I can."

She blinked at him. "Really?" He nodded.

"Wait, just one thing?"

"We'll start with one, yes," Zuko agreed. "Tomorrow, maybe, something else. Don't push me."

Katara nodded enthusiastically. Zuko was all lies and secrets. Masks and disguises. It was time to put an end to them. "All right. Um… I guess we'll start with…" Her eyes dusted over Zuko scar, and her mind traced a million questions. But she knew which one she was going to ask tonight as if it came to her years in advance. She let her tone grow more gentle, though she spoke as if to remind him he had promised. "How many other people have you... have you killed?"

Zuko's face blanched. The question had hardly been delivered tactfully, Katara had to admit, but right now… well, she just felt she had to know. Right now, Zuko frightened her, and if there was ever going to be any kind of mending, she had to get over that fast.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised you asked me that... after tonight that is," he calmly whispered in that coarse voice of his.

It hit Katara that for the very first time she was going to hear something true about Zuko, something about his past no one else knew. Something to make him real to her again, to make him human. She didn't want to think of him as a senseless killer. She wanted a reason to believe in him, and she was finally going to get it.

For the second time that night, she could help but marvel at the turn the day had taken. Perhaps, from the ashes of this horrible event, there would rise some good after all...

The prince's eyes finished darting around after a bit, as if trying to recapture memories he had put far from his mind. Finally, he nodded before beginning. "...You have to understand Katara... everyone has their demons…" He started it with as much composure as he could have.

_"Everyone has their demons..."_


	35. Chapter 35:Resurfacing Memories

Author's Note:

MAIN NOTE: THANKS TO **SAUCEBENDER**, FOR HER EXCELLENT ADVICE ON THIS CHAPTER! and to everyone else who takes time to review and share their opinions with us!

_artsyelric: hope everyone had a great thanksgiving! trombe and i did (even though he doesn't like pie he still came to my house with his family to eat some. silly boys. oh welz, i guess that's why we love you!)_

**Trombe: Pie not for me. Anyway Sorry I wasn't able to reply to most of your reviews people but I'll have you know I have been reading them. And if things get a bit hectic let me know, the last thing we want is to alienate our readers. And most of you are right. Zuko shouldn't be a born killer, but neither is he a justicar of light. He's a perfect balance of a good soul trapped in a gray world. Oh and thanks to one of our readers for giving me the bright idea for including the origin of the Blue Spirit mask. You know who you are.  
**

_artsyelric: also, on a funnier note, trombe and i actually hung out for a bit this weekend (which we hadn't really done for a while, just the two of us, now that i think about it... *shrugs*) and he gave me a 'you know what i don't like about you' speech! oh the irony! i even called him on it. just though you fans would get a kick out of it. apparently this story is worming its way into our speech patterns... it also seems zuko and i are opposites in 'what we aren't liked' for - he's too strong, and i'm not strong enough! XDD  
_

_anyway, thanks trombs. the speech was really nice, for a 'you're a wuss' talk. what would i do without you to realistically analyze my pathetic life, you harsh bastard? *grins and runs back to glendale*_

**T****rombe: You never take my advice to heart anyway.**

_artsyelric: *pouts* i always do, trombs_

**Trombe: Stop pouting. No one's buying the act.**

_

* * *

_

**What I Don't Like About You  
**

**Chapter 35: Resurfacing Memories  
**

* * *

Privately, Qin Duyi hated the cold. He hated how it sapped away at his strength with every passing breeze and caress. He hated the frosty air that would exhale from his nostrils as he desperately tried to keep himself warm. He hated how the metallic structure of the ship seemed to absorb the cold like a sponge and how touching it brought about a burning-freezing sensation. Most of all he hated look out duty in the crow's nest high above the ship, where the cold wind left no warmth in his body, leaving his fingers to twitch and shake uncontrollably.

Who in their right mind would sail the frozen wastes of the southern pole in the dead of winter?

"Duyi, you blockhead. It's already been an hour, boy! You're suppose to check in your findings." The young sailor jumped when the voice echoed from a communication pipe, the contraption itself almost buried in a blanket of snow. "Anything yet?"

Duyi grimaced. The gruff old voice belong to none other then the Quartermaster of the ship himself, Hui Zhong. No doubt checking in on his progress; after all Duyi was considered to be the green horn of the ship's crew. As the quartermaster often liked to remind him, he still had the smell of summer on him.

The private awkwardly took hold of the communicator and adjusted the pipe closer to his vocals. "N-n-nothing to report, sir," he shivered. "J-j-just more icebergs and wide open blue space as far as I can see."

It took some time for his message to travel down to the bridge and when it finally did Hui Zhong answered back with a vaguely displeased grunt, and Duyi could almost see him scowling from the crow's nest. Not that the expression was unfamiliar anyway, since the quartermaster had never been spotted smiling or laughing. At least, not that Duyi had heard of.

"Just keep your eyes peeled for any sign of you-know-what and make sure to check in your reports on time. We don't want to make the prince more angry then he already is."

Duyi sighed. Ah yes, the master of the ship and current reason for his predicament. Prince Zuko and the chase for the ever elusive Avatar. It was a legend amongst the Imperial Navy. He had never actually believed the credibility of the story (why his nation's prince would spend his every waking moment chasing a myth was beyond him) until his recent transfer but he was aboard Prince Zuko's ship, _The Kirin_, and out of all things sitting in the crow's nest hoping to find some sort of sign of the guardian of the world who disappeared one hundred years ago.

If he didn't feel so cold he would have laughed at his current situation.

"P-p-permission to speak sir?" he forced through his chattering teeth before the quartermaster could leave the deck. "I-I-I can't feel my face." He could have sworn he heard snickers and laughs coming from the pipe, and had he not been so frozen, he might have flushed.

"Well then you'd better find something fast then, oughtn't ya?" he barked back up the pipe.

"Cut the boy some slack, Hui Zhong," a voice from a different pipe interrupted. "You know better then I do we never_ find_ anything out here."

"Ah, Lieutenant Jee," Zhong exclaimed. "Feel free to butt in any time you like. But first... I'm assuming you wouldn't mind being the one to tell our prince what you just told me." Hui Zhong spoke drolly, though his words carried serious weight.

The Lieutenant did not seem to have a response. After a moment of waiting, Zhong took it as his victory.

"...I thought as much," he concluded. "Now, everyone keep the chatter to a minimum and do your duties."

The Quartermaster's pipe went silent and Duyi sighed in frustration. He had three more hours to go until he was relieved of his duty. Three long agonizing hours of waiting, freezing, and then waiting some more. Like the Lieutenant's prediction he found nothing. After finishing up his final log, he felt as if he could have just died right there and then. His hands were numb despite the gloves he wore, making his descent down to the ship even more difficult.

Duyi was surprised to find the Lieutenant himself there waiting for him, a cup of warm soup in hand. Its hot steam was an inviting sight. But he was not one to forget manners and custom. He placed a fist over his hand in the traditional Fire Nation custom and bowed lowly enough to show respect of seniority but not too low as to the point of insulting.

"At ease, private," the man insisted jovially. "I don't really like it when other people bow to me like that. You're not in the army anymore and this is... well, I guess were not part of the Imperial Navy either. " Lieutenant Jee allowed himself a small chuckle before handing the warm cup to Duyi.

"Thank you, sir." Already Duyi could feel himself getting warmer as he held the cup closer to his face.

"Don't mind the Quartermaster, kid. Hui Zhong's actually a decent human being once he's out of uniform. You should hear him on music night. The man can play one hell of a tune on that Sungi horn."

"Music night?" Duyi asked inquisitively.

"Oh that's right! you just transferred here from the mainland. I take it you haven't met the General yet?"

Duyi's eyes widened. It was a generic ranking title in the military but everyone on board knew who the General was. "The Dragon of the West? No sir, I don't think I have." The Crown Prince now known as General Iroh was a hero among the Fire Nation People, the only one to have broken down the impenetrable gates of Ba Sing Se - some even say that he was Sun Li, the glorious strategist, reborn.

"A good man," Jee stated with a familiarity that impressed Duyi immediately. "I wouldn't want to have served any other. The General is away right now so the crew haven't been feeling like playing. Uh... his highness is not really a stout admirer of music night."

"I, I see..." Duyi took a sip from his soup, and it felt heavenly as the warm liquid entered his body.

Jee rubbed his chin as he watched Duyi inhale the soup, apparently formulating some kind of opinion. Duyi wondered if he was curious about the soup he had provided the boy. Did he perhaps expect a judgment of it's flavor? It seemed unorthodox, but then... much on this ship was unorthodox. At least, the way Duyi saw it. But before Duyi could think of a response, the man spoke. "You're kind of young to be joining the Fire Nation military, if you don't mind me saying. How old are you, son?"

The Lieutenant's question caught Duyi off guard as he choked a bit from the soup he'd just drank. His eyes then went straight to his senior officer, studying the Lieutenant. Lieutenant Jee was not an old man but it was obvious he had past his prime a long time ago. His eyes were intense, his body was in good conditioning, a likely trait of a battle-hardened veteran of war.

Suddenly Duyi felt younger then he really was.

"...I've seen my eighteenth summer just this year, sir," he answered meekly.

The Lieutenant didn't seem surprised, but he shook his head breifly. "...Barely a man grown. Why, I think you're only a shy bit older then our prince..."

"I wouldn't know, sir." Truthfully Duyi did not know. The few glimpses he caught of the Crown Prince were rare. All he could remember was the image of a young man, whose face was hard and stern, made even fiercer by the royal knot he wore his hair and that scar...

"Well, I'm sure that's for the best. The less you meet Prince Zuko the better off you are."

Despite how little Duyi did know about his strange new life style, the boy was sure of one thing. Everyone in the ship seemed to be wary of the ship master.

"Uh, sir-"

"It's Lieutenant or Jee, so just drop the sir," the older veteran corrected him matter-of-factly.

"All right... Lieutenant..." Judging from all the times he had spoken to the Lieutenant, he seemed to be a well liked fellow. Duyi noticed how he was well respected by the crew. It felt easier to talk to him rather then Quartermaster Hui Zhong, so he just had to ask. "Just... um... Why are we here? In the southern sea, I mean. Isn't this Water Tribe territory? Of course, I know were suppose to look out for the Avatar and-"

Before he could finish the older soldier cut him off with a stern clasp on the shoulder.

"Son, what did you do?" he asked calmly.

"I- What?"

"What. Did. You. Do?"

"I don't understand..."

Lieutenant Jee looked him in the eye and nodded as he began to walk to the mess hall. Duyi didn't seem to have a choice but to follow, just happy to be out of the cold. Inside the hall he followed the Lieutenant to an empty table and sat down after the senior officer.

"You know Mian Ju over there?" The Lieutenant threw his head to his left, indicating the cook behind the counter. "He used to be a promising officer - there was even talk that he might have commanded a ship of his own. That is, until he decided to fool around with an Admiral's daughter."

Duyi winced, though whether in sympathy to the man's fall or because of his dishonorable actions was uncertain.

But Jee barely allowed him time to process the thought. "You see that man with only one eye?" he continued, gesturing with a hand to a man with a big, black patch over his face. "You can't tell now, but Aiguo was an Agni Kai champion before he lost his eye in a skirmish." Duyi thought the patch made him look like a pirate, and attempted to image the scarred up fellow as an Agni Kai champion before the Lieutenant turned them away.

Finally he pointed casually to one more person. "Cheng Lei is a talented mariner. Would have climbed the ranks too if he hadn't disobey orders and had just done what his captain had told him. Warned his captain that taking the azure sea and the nearby Earth Kingdom ports was dangerous and unnecessary, said that there was no point in taking cities and ports that had little strategic value. They branded him a traitor and an Earth Kingdom sympathizer. Do you see where I'm going with this, kid?"

"I..." Duyi was still quite confused.

"Rebels, traitors, cripples, and insubordinates. These are what make the crew of _The Kirin_. Don't you get it? Do you really think the Fire Nation would willingly hand over a full, able bodied crew to this fluke mission, when they could be used for more important matters? So instead we man this ship. A skeleton crewed ship led on a wild goose chase. This is our punishment as much as Prince Zuko's."

"So why is the Crown Prince here?" Duyi asked, thinking of all the misfits around him. "Why does he want to capture the Avatar so bad?"

But the Lieutenant shook his head. "Who knows. The prince keeps to himself, and I think he likes it that way."

Duyi took another sip of his soup before letting that thought sink in.

"I... uh... I was caught moonlighting as a blacksmith's apprentice." He finally understood the Lieutenant's earlier question, and he felt his ears heat as he revealed his own transgression. It didn't even seem as much compared to the previous histories of the other men.

Jee's eyes cocked up. "You a smith's boy?"

Duyi laughed. "No sir, I'm not." Back in his home town he was known as scrawny Duyi. "I just needed the extra money. I have a mother and sister that I take care of who are relying on me."

"...and your father?" Jee wondered carefully.

"....Died fighting in the war with the Earth Kingdom," Duyi stated calmly.

"Oh... I'm sorry, son."

"Don't worry about it..." Duyi was used to people speaking sympathetically about it, but somehow it seemed different coming from the seasoned Lieutenant. "He always said that he would rather die fighting then of old age. Guess he got his wish..." Duyi laughed nervously, hoping that the older man wouldn't pry anymore into the matter; his father had always been a touchy subject for him.

"So, Lieutenant," he changed the subject. "Why does everyone seem to avoid the prince?"

Lieutenant Jee didn't even bother pondering first before answering. "Let's just say that its best for your health not to even be near his highness."

A loud boom shook the metallic ship, its slight tremor cause Duyi to wobble a bit, although the Lieutenant was not even fazed by it.

"What was that?! Are we under attack?!" Duyi quickly glanced around, expecting the alarm to sound off any moment.

"No... _that_ would be Prince Zuko," Jee stated simply.

* * *

Useless!

Everyone around him was useless!

It was a simple task. Follow the coordinates to the letter, find the Avatar, and inform him once the hundred year old man was found!

"Your highness we've double checked this route and-"

"Then check again, Captain!" the prince roared. "This place is one of the few in the world in which is not under Fire Nation influence, ergo a prime spot for the Avatar to hide!" Zuko's voice boomed, echoing off the metal of the ship's hull and sounding even louder in the confines of his quarters. "And he's got to be _somewhere!"_

"But, your-"

"Do as your told Captain! Things might have been more lax while my Uncle was here but that does not change the fact that I am master of this ship!" Fire flared from the fourteen year old's fist as it scorched the metallic floor.

Captain Jian Wei had little choice but to comply. One did not argue with royalty, banished or not. Protocol was too strong. "...Yes... your highness..." The man looked bitter despite his acceptance, and suddenly Zuko couldn't stand the sight of him any longer.

"Leave me!" the boy prince commanded as he fumed off to the small meditation chamber in his room.

Only when he heard the doors closed did he unleashed his fury. His fists banged against the floor as fire erupted from them. He was sure the force of his blow should have left a dent. He could feel the numbing pain creep upon his knuckles. He roared in defiance of everything. Of all of it - of pain itself! This pain was nothing compared to the one he felt everyday upon his face. It had already been a year since that ill-fated Agni Kai duel against his father and the scar he bore from that day forward had not stopped throbbing ever since. Even the icy chill of the South Pole did little to ease the fiery pain it gave him.

The memory of that day only served to fuel his rage once more as he felt the fire within swelling once again.

Leaping in the air he spun around and threw a perfectly arced roundhouse, leaving in its wake a wave of brilliant orange flame leaping to scorch the metallic confines the room. As his flames raged unleashed, he realized the crew (in the absence of his uncle, most likely) had given up on replacing tapestries in his room. There was nothing but cold metal on the walls now, and metal did not burn. The flames died out quickly, but the move left the prince a bit winded and he began to breathe more heavily. Finally feeling the red haze had lift from his vision, he let the rage dissipate until only weariness remained. But even without rage, there was always anger. It was always with him, his silent, brooding companion.

How long must he suffer? How much more before he would find his honor once more?

If he had known the humiliation and the agony that lay ahead of him in his banishment he would have...

_Would have what?_ Zuko angrily rebuked himself. There was no use in regretting. His own father and liege lord had punished him in front of the entire court. And now he lived only by the very same man's so-called good graces, by exile. _I deserved it, after all, _he was reminded of his father's words. _What right have I to complain? It was because of my own failure to act that I am banished. Isn't that what they told me?  
_

But how then was he suppose to respond during that Agni Kai? Wasn't it a crime against the heavens to fight your own blood? And why did his father feel the need to burn the lesson into him? Wasn't his shame enough? He didn't need a scar to know he would never please the man. Why wasn't he good enough? He'd tried so hard to please them. Even Mother's promise that his father loved him seemed hollow now...

Was everything a lie?

This had all happened because of one thing, one small, stupid thing a foolish young prince had done.

He had shown compassion.

Zuko shook his head in anger as the advice Azula had given him time and time again swirled through his head.

_Compassion is for the weak, dear brother... and the dead._

Zuko hated to admit that more then anything. But perhaps Azula was right_. _Perhaps she had been right all along and that he was the fool for thinking otherwise_.  
_

But no more. If he was to change and regain his honor it was time to purge himself of such weakness. Maybe then he could correct his mistake to his father and then-

A loud blare suddenly emitted from the pipes and brought the prince back into reality. It was soon followed by an alarmed shout.

"Sea Wolves!"

Prince Zuko stood upright and steeled himself for the coming battle. Sea Wolves was the designated code for an attack by the Water Tribe.

* * *

"Was that Prince Zuko too?!" Duyi was startled at the loudness of the alarm - he had never been under attack before.

"No," Lieutenant Jee grimly replied. He had not expected an attack by the Water Tribes out here in the open southern sea. In all his years of experience fighting them he had never known the Southern Water Tribe to be this bold. Unlike their fortified Northern counter part the Southern Tribe had been greatly weakened by the war and should not have the manpower for such an attack. "I'm afraid this is for real, kid."

He knew there was no time to ponder the enemies' motives. They were under attack. Now was the time to move if he wanted to save his men. Deciding on a course of action, he let his battle instincts take over.

"Chen Lei! Tell the men to arm themselves! Aiguo! Gather any firebenders and defend that deck!" He barked his orders and no one questioned him as everyone on board scrambled into action. They may be the unwanted dregs of society, but they were still soldiers of the Fire Nation. They knew their job, but he stated it anyway. "Try to keep them from boarding us for as long as possible!"

"Sir!"

"Duyi, you'd better suit up, son," the man added in a tired, deeply serious voice. "I'd rather not use you if I don't have to, but I have a feeling I'm going to need every last man on board to defend this ship. You're no bender but how's your sword arm?" As he asked, the Lieutenant began to don his metal grieves and gauntlets, the only sort of armor a competent firebender should need.

Duyi's eyes darted about uncertainly, but his hands were steady and not shaking, and his back was straight. He delivered a response with only a slight hesitation. "Uh, they trained us back in the academy so-"

"Good enough," Jee cut him off, determined to keep the green kid out of as much trouble as possible, but confident that he would do what he could if it came down to it. The boy was Fire Nation, after all. "Watch my back and make sure to watch yours too." He slapped Duyi on his back before striding for the surface of the ship.

Echoing a battle cry the Lieutenant slammed the metal door open as he and his compatriots began flooding unto the deck, ready to face the intruders...

...Except no one was there. Only the lowly whisper of the winter breeze sang lonesomely, made even more so in the blanket of evening. There were no other sounds. Nothing else but his men, tensed and ready, and the cold. In the South Pole the sun held little sway against the moon and had already set hours ago. Jee wondered how long until he would see it again.

A gruff voice interrupted the deathly still. "What in the hell?! A false alarm?" Mian Ju grunted as he relaxed his stance, ready to put away his guan dao, the massive halberd's butt clanging against the metal surface, loud in contrast to the previous silence.

"Hold your position Mian Ju!" Jee dutifully reminded him. This can't be right. Someone had alerted the entire crew and yet where were the attackers? "Who was on look out duty?!" Jee glanced above trying to make out whoever it was on the crow's nest.

"Sir I think it was Xiobo after me." Duyi licked his lips, as he nervously tightened his grip on his single dao sword.

Hearing that, Jee doubled his efforts into making out the silhouette he spotted on top of the look out post. Duyi was right, he could see the muscular physique of the pirate turned soldier Xiobo except it was hunching over the railings of the nest, unmoving. Only after he had spotted a whale bone spear protruding from his back did he realize why.

"He's dead..." Jee whispered.

Suddenly shadows from the sides of the ship flocked to their positions as they were all caught unaware.

"AMBUSH!!!" someone had the decency to shout out belatedly, only to be muffled in the fighting.

The silence was gone now. Fire flared, swords clanged, and men shouted. The Lieutenant blasted fire from his fist, illuminating the night and he saw their faces. Painted in that hideous war paint and garbed in the blue of their people, the warriors of Southern Water Tribe were a fearsome sight to behold. Reckless, talented fighters without fear. Jee had never faced anyone else like them.

One of the warriors spotted him, sneered and then began charging at him. He deftly avoided the blow from a club by side-stepping at the last minute, launching a spinning backhand as a form of retaliation. The metal bracers he wore amplified the blow as he felt the warrior's teeth being knocked out.

His vision was already getting used to the darkness. Elsewhere he spotted comrades who weren't faring as well as he. Mian Ju was cornered by two warriors as he tried to bat them away by spinning his guan dao, Aiguo was bleeding from a whale bone dagger that left a deep gash in his shoulder, and he had lost sight of Duyi. Already he saw three men garbed in the armor of the Fire Nation on the floor, red ooze flowing freely from them and pooling on the floor.

They needed to reform and regroup. The Warriors of the Water Tribe were fearsome and coordinated, just like their namesakes; they were Wolves of the Sea. But Jee knew first hand how individual valor and prowess often got the better of them. They were not disciplined. They were not soldiers of the Fire Nation. He was not about to die this day. They were going to win this. He just hoped that there were no waterbenders among them.

"Form up on me!!!" he commanded, projecting his voice to the entire ship.

Everyone must have heard as the Fire Nation Soldiers that were still alive began slowly backing away from the enemy and to where their commanding officer was.

_No,_ Jee reaffirmed. _Not one more of us is going to die this day._

* * *

Zuko garbed himself in the gilded armor that was fashioned especially for him, his breathe short, his heart pounding. He was used to fighting. That was part of everyday life as the son of the most powerful man in the Fire Nation. But knowing you were supposed to be used to it and feeling accustomed were two very different things.

Never the less, he was the prince. He didn't have the luxury of hesitating. Comfortable or not, his honor was stronger, and he was drawn undeniably towards the sounds of violence beyond his cabin.

He opened his door with determination setting in, and fire flaring in his scar as it rubbed against his rough metal helmet. This was his ship. He knew he must defend it. But as he tried to make his way towards the deck two fully armored men, with helmets that made them look like crimson specters, stopped him.

"My lord, you cannot go up there. It is too dangerous!" one of them spoke.

Zuko recognized the two now as the bodyguards he had been given. They were members of the Royal Procession, elite Firebenders chosen to protect the line of royalty. However, he could not recall either of their particular names, and did not even bother trying. All that mattered was that they were blocking him from his fight.

"A prince of the Fire Nation should not run or hide from his enemies!" he warned them.

"The general ordered us to keep you safe, sire!"

Steam flared from the prince's nostrils. How dare they speak to him as if he were a child! "Are you my men, or my uncle's?!"

The two stared at each, dumbfounded by the question.

"...yours your highness," they both answered hesitantly.

Zuko scowled despite his verbal victory. "Then follow me or get out of my way!"

He stumbled past the towering guards and opened the hatch to the deck. What greeted him then was the sound of chaos and the sight of darkness. A flame from a firebender here and there lit and died in the night like a candle would giving way to the wind. He heard the yells, the screams, the clanging of steel, the sounds of death.

His heart began beating faster. His mind reeling in anxiety. This was for real. This was what real battle was like.

For a slight second fear took a grip on his heart, before he reminded himself he was a son of Fire, and fear should hold no sway on those who were touch by the flame. He had to act. Yet why did his hands feel so damn heavy?!

One of the blue clad warriors must have taken notice of his hesitation as he practically materialized out of the night, storming across the battlefield and heading towards the prince. The Water Tribe warrior did not look like the rest, with their fearsome war paint. No, this one wore, strangely enough, a mask to conceal his identity. A blue mask that held the face of what seems to be a spirit... no, a grinning demon. But face paint, helmet or mask, the Water Tribe warriors were meant to be intimidating, and Zuko certainly was.

The masked man echoed a cry as he jumped, vaulting over two Fire Nation soldiers locked in their own battles, and now stood only but a few meters away from Zuko. With speed like no other, the man puled out two short bone swords from his waist and moments later Zuko seemed to realize the now swinging blades were meant to cleave him in two. With a cry of surprise, Zuko barely managed to avoid one, and stopped the other blow from landing by catching the man's arm. Thank the spirits for instinct, for training. He was alive.

But his face was now inches from the blue demon.

Beneath the mask, somewhere in the darkness behind the eye-slits, Zuko could have sworn he saw for a moment, genuine, human surprise. "You!" The man's voice was muffled by the mask, but this close, it seemed as cutting as his blades. "But... You're... you're just a boy..."

The close proximity between the two allowed the masked man to study Zuko even as the prince examined his foe. Zuko could feel the man's strength easing down, and he seemed confused. For a moment Zuko had thought the man would stop in his assault.

How wrong he was. He crumpled as he felt the man kick him square in the chest, sending him sprawling towards the cold metal deck. The armor had taken some edge of from the kick but it made it difficult to try and get back up. It was slightly bent now, and its weight was holding him down. In the back of his mind Zuko cursed himself for knowing full well the disadvantages of fighting in armor and still donning it. It was making him a target now, as well as slow.

The man advanced, firelight framing his form as the battle raged behind him, and blue danced across his mocking, demonic mask. Zuko still had not found his feet.

Fear once again found a place in his heart. He was wide open. This man could really kill him!

Two crimson bodies flew past him as they came to his aid. They were his bodyguards! The fight was now three to one!

If their numbers intimidated the man, it did not show. With a war cry, he leaped into the middle of them, a blue whirlwind of blades. He spun around once and his bone short swords found soft joints in the armor of one of the elites, so quickly he must have done it hundreds of times before. The crimson clad soldier howled in pain as he toppled over leaving the other warrior to defend himself, and the prince.

Now, however, the Water Tribe warrior found himself on the defensive, as the second firebender threw numerous balls of fire from his fist. Unlike the soldiers of the Fire Nation, the warriors of the Water Tribe preferred little to no protection, relying on their speed and maneuverability to steer them away from harm. And this man was flaming fast!

Once again the masked warrior had managed to turn the tides of battle into his favor by tossing a concealed dagger right into the second bodyguard's helm. While the steel protected him from immediate death, the blow clearly cause some discomfort as the vibration and ringing caused the firebender to be disoriented, his eyes scrunching painfully. It was enough time for the Water Tribe warrior to close the distant between them, and he tackled the soldier right into the side of the ship, where he was wrestled overboard.

Zuko could not believe it! In the time it had taken for him to get up from his predicament this man had already dispatched two of his elites like they were nothing more then flies.

_So this is a warrior_, Zuko's thoughts betrayed his feelings.

But this was no time to think. He had to be in his fighting stance.

"We warned you Fire Nation scum to never come here again!" The mask man's muffled voice growled in anger as he focused on Zuko once more. "We warned you to leave these seas alone!" His warning delivered, the warrior charged the prince, and Zuko found his feet.

The two began their own duel, with the prince on the receiving end of blows he could barely dodge. While the gilded armor protected him from serious harm the bone blades left small cuts on his face and large dents on his metallic gauntlets. The very armor he had cursed for slowing him down was now saving him from a majority of damage. Many strikes were so fast, Zuko didn't even see them, let alone have a chance to block. This man with the two swords was no amateur with the weapon, and certainly not a fellow student in a sparing match. This was a real fight, a true blade battle, far different from an Agni Kai. And here Zuko was with his own dual dao swords back in his quarters!

Zuko spun furiously and created a pillar of flame before him and his attacker, hoping to buy himself some time.

Gasping through burning lungs, he heard the man's voice cut through his fire. "You people took my Mia! You took my life! It should be fair I take yours!" Hatred, accusation, and anger equal to the prince's own dripped from his enemy's voice like venom.

The flames died. He roared out once in the fading firelight, and charged after the younger firebender.

Zuko felt the weight of difference between them. He was only a boy of fourteen years old. This was a warrior grown. How was he suppose to win?

Strangely enough, out of all the people who might have advised him, he heard the voice of his sister calling out to him.

_Oh grow up, Zuzu. What did we both learn in the academy? Size matters little in the face of true genius. If your enemy is bigger than you, then his downfall should be all the greater!_

Somehow hearing Azula's mocking tone gave him the courage and the fury to fight back. He _knew_ she would say that! Even in the face of death, she would call him cowardly, and point out his failures. Rage surged through him, strong enough to drown out the fear. His scared eye burned against his helmet as he almost heard his father commanding him to stand and fight. Waves of fire emitted from his fists and feet.

The sudden firestorm caught the warrior off guard, as he covered his concealed face from the heat and lost his footing on the slippery deck, his base broken, his skin singed.

It was over! He had conquered over the blue devil!

It was as he stepped over his enemy that he realized a presence at his side. The boy's face was familiar but the name was elusive.

"Your highness are you alright?" the soldier asked.

"I'm, I'm fine..." Zuko was out of breathe from the adrenaline rush, his eyes barely focusing on the young face of the soldier beside him.

But, like a spirit bent on vengeance, the fallen warrior stood up once more, ignoring his wounds. In fact, they almost seemed to make him wilder. Zuko was flabbergasted at the man's tenacity, and worried what a second round would do to him. He tried to keep a grasp on his anger, which had never seemed to go away until right now, when he needed it, if only to keep the fear at bay.

The other boy seemed to sense his hesitation. The young jaw set. "I'll defend you, your highness!!!" the nameless soldier shouted as he ran to confront the newly risen warrior, dao sword in hand.

"No! Wait you fool-"

Zuko warning was too late, and made him gasp against stinging ribs. The soldier was too eager, and the warrior was no fool. And just like before the masked warrior ducked and avoided a swing from the soldier's blow, making it look clumsy and slow, and countered with his own. The soldier was not wearing a helm, a fact the blue demon took advantage off by thrusting one of the bone blades right through the man's throat. The blow was clean. The sound of the man's wheezing gasp however... was like an agonized whisper.

A whisper that shook the foundations of Zuko's world.

"No!!!"

At once Zuko's rage and fear mixed together in an explosion of emotions as fire erupted from his fists with such intensity the air crackled. His previously elusive anger had returned full force. The fire consumed the man whole as his entire being was caught in the flame. He screamed a horrific wail as he desperately tried to put out the flame. On his knees he rolled and screamed like a mad man before finally he stopped moving, but even then the fire continued. Zuko fed all his hatred into it, all his hurt. That boy had died, a victim, without fighting, and this demonic spirit was to blame! The fire raged on.

Finally, Zuko dropped to his knees, his senses numb, his mind blank. Before him was the remains of the man, his body charred and oozing, his spasm dead. Fire was still licking at the flesh there.

He was dead.

Was that was it was like... to kill? The prince felt as if everything was both surreal and painfully true at the same time. It felt like there was a weight deep inside him somewhere, but also wildly, victoriously freeing.

He thought he might be sick.

To help keep his head, Zuko's eyes slowly scouted his surroundings. The Water Tribe warriors were falling back. His soldiers were pressing on. They were winning.

Yet, somehow, the feeling left him empty.

Another soldier came to his side, this time someone he knew.

"Your highness are you alright?" Lieutenant Jee's scruffy face was just visible beneath the moonlight.

Zuko could not find his voice, so he grudgingly nodded to answer.

"Why were you out here? Weren't you..." The Lieutenant's voice cut off as he saw the dead body of Zuko's body guard, and the smoldering corpse at the prince's feet. "How did... What happened?!" But then, the Lieutenant's face fell and his questions stopped as he found the still form of the soldier who fell trying to defend the prince. "Oh spirits... Duyi..."

So that was his name. The name of a foolishly brave soldier who had tried to do his duty. Zuko's thoughts whirled, fighting the returning urge to hurl everything within his stomach.

* * *

It had been an hour since the attack.

Zuko had his men accounted for. They had lost eight men, and a dozen were injured badly. But they had won... although the price for their victory was no cause for celebration. Even now, however, all Zuko could think about was what had happened earlier. He had killed a man. He had taken a life. His hands quivered at the mere thought. _We were in the right!_ he tried to justify himself! _They attacked us! We were only defending ourselves from being killed!_

Only defending ourselves...

Slowly Zuko walked over to the now smoking corpse of the warrior he had slain. He had told the men to leave the body alone. He crouched down in dreaded anticipation as he examined the deceased warrior. He almost choked over the rancid sent of burned flesh and blood, but he forced rigid control back into his system. He needed to see. The flames had left little of what the warrior once was. His blue furred garb had been mostly consumed in the flame, his flesh a smoky charred black, and the smell... Again he wrestled his mind away from it.

Then his eyes caught on something whole, solid, and worth seeing. The mask. The blue mask the warrior had worn was left unscathed, as if the flames had not touched it at all. No scorch mark, no anything. His hands seemed to move of their own accord, seeking out and reaching for the mask unconsciously. He lifted the blue visage out of curiosity and finally his eyes fell towards the face of the dead. Sure enough, it was unrecognizable. What remained was hardly human. All he had known of the warrior was what he had revealed in battle.

_"We warned you Fire Nation scum to never come here again! We warned you to leave these seas alone!"_

He was a man of the Water Tribes.

_"You people took my Mia!_ "

He had a loved one he lost...

_"You took my life! It should be fair I take yours!"_

He blamed Zuko.

Suddenly the thought was too much. His strength left him, and he was finally sick to his stomach. Retching robbed Zuko of all his strength as he heaved and hurled on the ground the remains of what he ate. His eyes were watery as if he wanted to cry, but he shook his head, refusing to give in to the sinking feeling. He knew, somewhere, his men were watching, but as his emptied his stomach of its every last morsel, there was nothing on his mind but the agonized corpse.

And so he stayed there, kneeling, clinging the dreadful looking mask that seemed to smile wickedly at his pain to his chest as he lay there in emotional agony.

* * *

That was three years ago.

Zuko could still remember the man's words, even now, as Katara stared at him through the rain with her deep blue eyes. He had thought, that night, that he would never forget them as long as he lived. Tonight, he knew it was true. The Blue Spirit he had fought so long ago was as deeply burned into the prince's soul as the fire was into the nameless man. He had even once taken up its persona for his own, another secret he had kept from everyone. He wished Katara would say something. She had just been staring this whole damn time!

As if sensing his inward cry, the girl opened her mouth, finally! He waited for her to condemn him, to blame him, and to hate him again, and he could almost feel the long since cooled fire in his scar rage anew. "Did you save Duyi?" she asked.

He choked. She understood. That had been as great a nightmare as the burned flesh - the image of the boy wheezing around the bone blade. Zuko had failed his soldier.

Katara could see his answer in his face, wordless, and pained. "I'm sorry."

Zuko's face twisted. She was _sorry?_ Of course, he had no idea what he would have said in her position, but somehow the sentiment was infuriating. Zuko wanted nothing more than to stop out of the clearing. He hadn't wanted to talk about this - ever! - and yet, here he was, drenched in rain, reliving it.

All for this stupid girl.

But when he turned back to her, frustrated and disgusted, the huge, blue eyes met his again... and then his breath caught up to him. They weren't the same eyes she had listened with, detached, patient, and nonjudgmental. They were filled with sympathy and understanding a simple 'I'm sorry' only began to explain. The apology wasn't pity, or false understanding, or dismissal. It was exactly what it meant. She now shared his sorrow.

It was somewhat frightening, and he wanted desperately to reach out to her, whether to sooth her or himself he was unsure, but he remembered her request earlier not to be touched, and stopped himself. He settled for sliding a bit closer to her, his back scratching against the tree bark. "Yeah, well... It happens to all of us eventually, right?" He glanced back at her strong, angry gaze. "Or... maybe not..."

"It shouldn't have had to happen to you at all, Zuko!"

"Well, the search for the Avatar isn't exactly a walk among the clouds," the prince grumbled. "I lost more men that just Duyi chasing you and your friends around that icy wasteland, and even more hunting you to the North Pole."

"And..." Katara took a deep breath. "...How many more did you have to kill?"

Zuko bit his lip inside his mouth, wondering how much he should tell her. He still wasn't sure exactly what her response was, besides sorrow. But the truth was out almost before he could stop it. ."Enough."

The word hung in the air, like a curse.

"Enough?" Katara asked.

Zuko nodded wearily. "We've all seen our fair share in this war. Yan Ra was just another who's life I have been forced to end. Killing is easy Katara...but it should never be." He let his head drop wearily into his hands. It was almost dawn. "I have _never_ forgotten even one of them..."

There was a blur of motion, and the next thing he knew, strong, wet limbs were around him. Despite her request not to be touched, and in spite of all her insistence not to care for him, Katara was suddenly pressing against his side, holding him so tightly he thought she might fear he would drift away. "I'm sorry," she said again, her voice a whisper. "I'm sorry." Zuko was still trying to decide how to react as she pulled his head sideways against her shoulder. "I should have been faster... If I was better, he would have been frozen, and you would never have had to... to do that. Just like with Hama. If I had bloodbent sooner then, you would never have been hurt! I'm sorry!"

Zuko grunted. He had expected her to hate him again, to shun him, not... well, this! His hands trembled. He had just confessed to the best - and most judgemental! - person he knew some of his deepest secrets, and she was treating him not as if he were a monster, but as if he was a child she had somehow hurt!

He was not weakened by this! He was a killer, a prince, not a babe to be comforted!

But still... her arms around him felt very... nice.

Torn between anger and hurt, his conflicted feelings towards the waterbender, and this strange new desire to just scream into her shoulder until everything else just went away (that he squashed very firmly), Zuko stayed still in Katara's arms, but allowed her to continue holding him. For a time, there was nothing but the two of them, Katara rocking slightly, and crying tears the prince would never let fall. He knew it wasn't her fault at all, and hoped she wasn't blaming herself, but over all... he was immensely grateful that she didn't hate him. And for that, he let her hold him until she tired.

After a while, her grip loosened, and she sank back down beside him, her cheeks slightly flushed. "Thank you," she whispered.

Zuko raised an eyebrow sideways at her. "For what?" he asked, confused.

"For telling me." She nudged him with her shoulder. "I know it wasn't easy, but I'm grateful because... Because I want to understand you, Zuko. The real you. So... thank you."

The prince blinked at the confounding waterbender, and she laughed wearily and leaned against him, sleepily. He didn't think he would ever understand girls.


	36. Chapter 36:After the Rain

Author's Note:

_artsyelric:so, many reviewers have expressed concerns about zuko having killed before. most of these reviewers also say that they DO like it in the context of our story. just to reasure those of you thinking about it and NOT reviewing, i wanted to let everyone know that adding this is just a element we felt fit. it is not meant to change zuko at all. we want the characters to themselves, not go OOC. we just added the element to zuko that was already expressed in his character type._

_hope that reassures people, and that you like the story still._

_if not, we always read reviews, so if you have thoughts, problems, or if you think we're doing fine and we should stay on this course, please don't hesitate to say so. we won't know what you think if you don't!  
_

**Trombe: Well things are winding down but I'm in the home stretch people. I've got a couple of finals left so if we can't update as fast as we would like to...blame artsyelric. I know I do, for everything.  
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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 36: After the Rain  


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Sunlight streamed through the final vestiges of the storm clouds, catching in the remaining raindrops and shattering into sparkling, colorful rays, dancing through the leaves in streams above them.

Katara blinked in the fractured light, coming wearily awake. She smiled at the peaceful setting briefly before feeling something shift beside her. She stiffened. The warm thing she was sleeping with her back pressed against wasn't just the tree trunk. It was Zuko.

With a rush, the memories of the day before came back to her.

Of the man they had killed.

Of the things she had finally told him, and what he had said about her.

Of the scared teen's history.

Suddenly, the dawn wasn't so lovely any more. In fact, Katara felt slightly sick.

Very, very, painstakingly slowly, she detached herself from the dozing prince. It wasn't hard. His arms weren't touching or around her, and none of his body weight was either. She had been the one to initiate all the contact – and that scared her even more. Last night it had seemed acceptable. But out here in the daylight where the cover of the shadows had been it wasn't. Plus, right now, all she wanted was to be left alone, to move, maybe find food. Anything to keep her mind off her thinking about last night.

But as much as she craved solitude, she knew that shifting too fast would wake the prince immediately, and guilt paned across her heart. The boy never slept past sunrise. If he was still snoozing, he must be exhausted. And after everything they had said last night, after all he had done for her on this wild chase, she felt she owed him at least a good rest.

Plus, keeping him asleep would assure her privacy with her thoughts.

Appa gave a small bellow of greeting when Katara finally rose, and she gestured the bison to silence before rubbing his head. Zuko snorted slightly in his sleep, and strain played across his burned features, but he calmed and slept on, much to Katara's relief.

She scavenged for berries and wood. Zuko's fire had burned until he fell asleep, but only because he had been there to constantly feed the flame with his bending. The wood in their make-shift pit would hardly hold a spark on its own now, rain-soaked and burnt out as it was. But Katara was no stranger to camping, and the work was calming, letting her think without dwelling too heavily on matters. Soon she had a fire going, berries collected, and began looking for something to slice the last of their bread with.

It was just as she was pulling not just bread but also the remnants of cheese they had obtained the day before that it finally hit her. Yan Ra was dead. It wasn't his death that hunger over her now, but rather a freeing, justifying feeling that swept over her. A burden she hadn't even realized she held lifted quite suddenly from her chest, and without it she felt lighter than she had in years.

The monster who had haunted her dreams and stolen her childhood was gone forever.

Her mother had been avenged.

Part of her was horrified at herself, at her reaction. She was reveling, rejoicing even, in the untimely death of another human being. Guilt seeped in with the emotions, and shame, and even disgust. But they paled in the bright morning light in a way they hadn't during the previous night's storm. She knew they were still there, still real, and waiting to clutch at her again. She would have to face them, and soon. But for the first time in a long while, she was free.

A deep grunt from the tree told her the sleeping prince was awakening. "Mmm…" He yawned. "I slept late."

Katara felt her lips twitch slightly at his tone. Even in the morning he was reserved and dry. She brushed her hair over her ear as she tending the toasting bread slices she'd place over the fire pit. "I thought I'd let you sleep some more. You looked tired."

"I was..." A moment of Zuko's melancholic face tugged at Katara's heart. Reliving the past was never an easy task, especially ones best left forgotten.

"Would you like cheese on your toast, or berries?" She hoped hunger would eventually win out over their sullen and dry mood.

"Toast?" Zuko yawned again.

"Yeah," Katara agreed. "I figured we may as well eat the last of our bread since we'll be going home today anyway."

"Cheese then."

Katara nodded and dribbled the berries on her own slice, crushing to last of the cheese to finish melting across Zuko's breakfast. Appa let out a deep grumble and Katara allowed herself a small laugh. "Sorry boy," she told the bison, keeping her eyes on her cooking. "We don't have anywhere near enough bread for you." The bison snorted and Katara pulled Zuko's toast off the fire carefully. "You'll just have to eat grass until we get home." Boots appeared in her vision as the prince came to stand next to her and she turned to hand him his breakfast.

Suddenly she felt as if the air had gone from her lungs. Golden eyes met her own, and she felt frozen. Images from last night were flooding back, his words as he spoke of his past echoing distantly in her ears. The eyes blinked and she couldn't break the contact. Vaguely, she was aware his lips were moving.

"I'm sorry… what?" She felt dazed.

He crouched down in front of her, keeping his distance. "I said, thank you for the toast," he repeated.

"...You're welcome." She tried to smile. "Zuko... um... about last night-"

"Don't, Katara. You don't need to say anything." Zuko shifted uneasily. "You were caught up in the moment, I understand." He read her thoughts completely.

No more words were spoke after that. They both chewed silently on their toast and eyed each other, glancing away quickly if the other met their gaze.

_How did he do that?_ Katara wondered. _How could he be so... indifferent after every thing he said last night?_

Katara's whole take on Zuko was ever morphing, changing beneath her feet like one of Toph's rock-slides. One minute he was strong, protecting her, coaxing her to talk, to depend on him. The next he was wild, raging like an inferno, and acting in her stead where she failed. Then, suddenly, he was sorrowful, deep and unfathomable, speaking of things Katara had troubles imagining, concepts so grown up that even her worldliness held no match.

He would grin at her, and praise her.

Then shout at her and mock her naivete.

And now this strange… uncertainty. They were still talking. Well, kinda. He was still supposedly acting like himself. At least, what he said was very Zuko, and his tone was too. But there was something new now. He was holding back. Not like before, where he had been stiff and closed mouthed, but rather like a nervousness he was restraining. He seemed… hesitant. Awkward, even.

And then there had been last night. She saw it in his eyes again, when he spoke of home. He stopped being that overly strong, determinedly sacrificial person he kept showing her in his quest to be good. The perfection had fallen. He had allowed himself, even just for a small time, to be vulnerable to her.

His guilt.

His shame.

The demons that haunted him still.

All feelings he had shared with her.

she wasn't sure how she had taken it.

She had so many different feelings. Fear, respect, awe, compassion, confusion, and the desire to both comfort him and depend on him simultaneously.

Plus, the revelation that he had admittedly goaded her into this in part to get at her, and in part ignorance. She wasn't sure exactly how much of that she believed. She was sure Zuko would be willing to help her with something personal just for the chance to be with her, but she didn't think he had done anything on purpose. Zuko wouldn't hurt her, would he?

Well, not any more, at least. If she knew anything about him, she knew that.

She just wished she could stop discovering how little she actually did know about him.

Katara swallowed a bite of her toast. With a new day came a new outlook. She was still adjusting to everything, and some things still hurt her to dwell on, but the nightmare she had been living in was over. It was a new day.

"What are you smiling about?" Zuko asked suddenly.

"The weather... actually...I never thought how beautiful it looks after the rain." She flushed as he eyed her curiously.

Then the prince's eyes darted towards the sky, clear and blue. So different from yesterday.

"Yeah...I guess it is." He replied simply.

Okay, maybe obtaining this new outlook wasn't going to be _easy. _She settled back into her thoughts. There was still a lot to process, but at least she had a positive outlook.

"I think its time we headed back. Don't you?"

"Hmm?...Oh yeah...I am anxious to get back home."

Sighing, she crammed the last of her toast in her mouth. There would be plenty of time to think on the flight back. She was certain she could find a way to move on.

* * *

"We're back."

Zuko stirred. He'd been so lazy since he had Appa to fly him everywhere and no Avatar to train. He wanted to stretch his legs, and therefore longed to land again, but he was also a little bit worried about getting back to camp. Things between Katara and him were up in the air. Granted, that was better than fighting, as they had been when they left, but she had been going to emotional fluxes all morning, zoning out constantly, and hadn't said practically anything since they started flying. Not that he minded the silence. Just that…

Well, he was anxious. He didn't really want to confront the fact that he had revealed so much of his dark past to the girl, but he was also aching to know that he hadn't ruined everything by telling her. He knew there was no justification for his actions, for the way he treated people around him, his crew, his uncle, or even his enemies. It was one of the many touchy subjects in his past he usually avoided talking about.

Come to think of it, most of his past was like that…

Yet, talk about it he had. In his exhaustion and shock he had decided it would be courageous to tell her. Now he was wondering if he had made a grave error. He had never spoken about any of those things to anyone except Uncle, and even then he had avoided the conversations. Besides, Uncle was different. He had been there for everything bad in Zuko's life. Zuko didn't have to explain himself, because Uncle was there at the time. With Katara… that had been an entirely different experience.

He regretted it now. She didn't seem to be taking it well. Not that it surprised him. The initial pity she might have shown had washed away just like the rain. Now came what she really thought of him. There was nothing really to take well about it. It was savage, and hateful, and pathetic. Everything Katara was not. Everything he had almost made her become on this trip.

And now, below them on the shore, the small Avatar was waiting, watching them arrive. He would have to answer to both the boy and her brother, and he still hadn't thought of a single thing to say. But he knew he had been wrong. This whole trip had been wrong.

And he wasn't looking forward to the new conversation he now had to have with Aang.

Rival or not, the boy was his friend. Forcing him to bloody his hands was almost as bad as making Katara. He had just escaped that mistake once, and now he had to knowingly do the same thing to child below them, with the pain of his own first kill still fresh in his mind. He wished, just once, it could be someone else's problem. But he was the one already tainted. He would try to ruin as few of his remaining friends as he could.

Appa landed on the beach and Katara slid off him. She seemed to have been shrinking in on herself the whole flight back, and he hoped that wasn't a bad thing. He'd thought being back with everyone would make her feel better again. Maybe it still would. Maybe she was just nervous.

Zuko glanced up the hill towards the camp, where he could now hear the sounds of voices, meaning that Aang, at least, had seen them and was coming to greet them. But the waterbender turned and walked not towards the camp, but away. She crossed her arms over her chest and moved in silence out over the dock, seeking out her element as she had after bloodbending. Zuko knew then that she was still hurt, and felt guilty.

"Katara?" Aang's head popped over the grassy hill, and his eyes met the prince's, warmly, but wearily. "You guys are back?" Zuko grunted and jumped off the bison's back. Aang patted the beast as Appa nuzzled him affectionately, but the brown eyes never left Zuko's. "What happened?"

"We found him." Zuko felt like he was reporting bad news to an especially grim commanding officer, not talking about a trip to his gleeful, twelve-year-old friend.

"And?" Aang pressed, his voice tightly controlled.

Zuko pressed his lips together, and decided. He and Aang had a hard enough conversation ahead of them. He would spare the boy as much as possible. "Katara let him go."

Aang's eyes widened and his face relaxed. "Really?"

Zuko nodded. "I won't lie though. It was close. And… I think she still feels guilty." He took a deep breath. "Perhaps… You should go and talk to her?" It was the closest he could bring himself just then to admitting the boy had been right.

The Avatar seemed to sense there was more to Zuko's words, and nodded, his eyes softening. "I'll do that," he promised, and his voice sounded warmer than Zuko had heard it in days.

With a last smile, the boy ran past Appa, bounding lightly down the beach and onto the dock with steps much to large for a normal person his size. It amazed Zuko how integrated and natural airbending was to the small boy, and how incredibly difficult he found firebending. He supposed, though, that it must frustrate Toph even more.

As Aang ran out towards the end of the dock where Katara sat, her toes dangling just above the water, Zuko sighed, and followed at a more reasonable pace. After all, he was tired, and he could afford to give them time.

"Katara," Aang called as he approached. "Are you okay?"

Zuko winced. He knew Katara wanted to see Aang. She had spoken of him twice before finishing breakfast, but the boy was just so… direct. Absolutely no subtlety.

"I'm doing fine." Katara's voice was as strict as her posture, and Zuko glanced away as he came to a stop a few paces behind the Avatar, letting his eyes feast on the deep orange painting the sky as the sun sank beneath the Fire Nation islands.

"Zuko told me what you did," Aang ploughed on. "Or… what you didn't do, I guess." Zuko had never been one for beating around the bush, but he certainly prayed that Katara liked this kind of directness. Aang put a hand on his head and smiled, even though the girl couldn't see it. "I'm proud of you."

The smile could be heard in his voice though, and it seemed to reach out to Katara. Her back stiffened even more, and she trembled slightly before speaking, just as directly, back. "I wanted to do it. I wanted to take out all my anger at him, but… I couldn't." Her voice rocked between so strong it was almost harsh, and so quiet Zuko feared it might break. "I don't know if it was because I was too weak to do it, or if it's because I'm strong enough not to."

The prince turned his gaze back to her still stiff figure. She had revealed that fear so easily to Aang, while Zuko had needed to fight tooth and nail to drag it from her.

The boy didn't even blink though. He simply nodded. "You did the right thing." He spoke as if he had the final say, and Katara's back slumped forward as she relaxed at his judgment. The Avatar dropped to a knee beside her, and he head sunk even further, as if all the weariness was finally leaving her. She buried her face in her hands as Aang's hand came up to rub circles on her back. "It must have been so hard," the boy whispered. "But don't doubt yourself any more, Katara. You did well, and you're home now."

With a small wail, Katara gripped Aang's shoulders and pressed her face into his smaller frame. Zuko wondered if she was crying. She was still stiff, and looked as if she had run out of tears long ago. But Aang shushed her anyway until she calmed.

Zuko seriously considered turning and leaving then. Annoyance at being a third wheel combated with his desire to stay and see this end for the waterbender, and eventually won out. He was just turning to leave when Katara spoke.

"I feel so confused, still," she whispered.

"Don't," Aang insisted. "Forgiveness is the first step you have to take to begin healing."

Katara straightened sharply out of his arms, her face tightly controlled again, and a small darkness to her eyes. "But I didn't forgive him. I'll never forgive him."

"Yes, you will," Aang countered. "I know you will. In time."

Katara turned away and stood, making Aang's arms drop away from her. Zuko could see her eyes now, narrow, and shimmering. Aang stood behind her and rubbed his arm awkwardly. "Maybe… you just need to start with something smaller."

Katara took a deep breath, leaving Zuko a half second to wonder what that meant, before smiling. "I can do that," she agreed. "Maybe I can't forgive him, but…" her gaze soften as it captured Zuko's own confused eyes. "I am ready to forgive you."

She took a few steps towards him on the dock before pausing, just a few feet away at the look on the prince's face. Zuko tried to relax it, but he felt his skin drawing tight. "You shouldn't have to," he grumbled unable to meet her gaze.

"But I do." He looked up again at her insistence, now glad he had stayed through her cuddle with Aang. He wasn't sure if she was talking about the way he'd pressured her to go, the fact that _he _had indeed killed Yan Ra, his own breakdown the day before, or all of their past, fights and betrayals included. But when he looked at her eyes, the borders between all of his supposed transgressions blurred and faded. The statement because something so general and all encompassing that it nearly overwhelmed him as much as it was seeming to her. It was for everything, for anything, for a fresh beginning. "I do forgive you, Zuko. And… I'm sorry too."

He wanted to tell her not to be. Even though she had acted out of line, or even said and done hurtful things, he had done so much worse. Hearing her apologize like this, when their emotions were so raw and focused was… humbling. His tongue seemed thicker than it should, and the words just wouldn't form. Not wanting to look like an idiot, he nodded, and hoped it would express everything he didn't want to say.

And then, suddenly, his arms were full of Katara. She pressed close against him and held him tightly, like she had when he had finished his story. But this time, he hugged her back. It wasn't forced or awkward, nor was it romantic in the normal sense of the word. But it was intimate, and strong in a way Zuko was unfamiliar with. It was almost like… a mother's. But different too. The element was there, so similar to hugs he had received from his mother, or even once or twice from Uncle. But there was more as well, and he couldn't place it.

"I think it's time we tried this 'being friends' thing for real."

Zuko stiffened at her whisper, and then suddenly pulled her closer. That was exactly it. That was just what he was trying to describe. He smashed his feeling deeper inside him as they welled up. After everything he had said and done, she still wanted this badly to be his friend.

He wouldn't mess up this time.

She finally stepped back out of his arms, and he let her go, trying to hide his reluctance. Her hand stroked his shoulder as she stepped past him in a comfortable manner, and he turned to watch her walk away.

It was only as she was reaching the bank that he remembered he wasn't alone. Aang stepped up next to him, and he realized the smaller boy had been watching her too. He turned to Zuko with a peaceable smile, and Zuko hid a flush that he had witness all of that – even, if he thought about it, been part of its cause. This boy obviously didn't know he was in a battle _against_ Zuko for the girl's affection.

Stamping on the emotions Katara had sent stirring through him, he spared the boy a glance. He had to remember that this kid was his friend too. Aang was his Avatar, his hope, and the first person to see behind his mask and wonder if they could be friends. Aang had been his supporter when Zuko first came here, and believed in him to no end. Because of those things, Zuko had to make this as painless as possible on his innocent friend, regardless of how either of them felt about Katara. He was the boy's teacher, after all.

So he conceded his own realization first. "You were right about what Katara needed. Violence wasn't the answer."

"It never is." The Avatar played right into his hands.

"Then I have a question for you." Zuko turned to face him, the setting sun reflecting off his blue arrow and shaved head. He was still smiling knowingly. With deep regret, Zuko ruined that. "What are you going to do when you face my father?"

* * *

"Zuko!"

The prince flinched as Sokka shouted his name. But the blue-eyed warrior didn't seem to notice. He just grinned wider as he rushed over to greet his friend. "You guys are back!"

"Yeah," Zuko agreed.

The prince hefted Appa's saddle off his shoulders as he stopped to talk to his friend. The minute he had freed the great beast from it, the bison had flown off in search of better food than grass. Or maybe to wait for Aang. The kid was _still _back at the docks, despite the falling darkness. Zuko hadn't wanted to press the Avatar too quickly, so, when Aang didn't answer after a long period of patience from the prince, Zuko had sighed and left him to his thoughts.

Sokka's eyes locked with his, intensely. "How did it go?"

"Katara's fine," Zuko promised. "It's over. Permanently."

Sokka didn't pry any further than that. One way or another he knew what Zuko meant.

"...Good. Maybe she can finally ease up on herself." Sokka smiled sadly.

"I hope so." Zuko shared the sentiment. "Katara should already be up here - haven't you seen her yet?"

"Naw," Sokka denied, his intense attitude gone. He accepted Zuko's words at face value, and moved forward, unconcerned. He glanced towards the girl's tent, drawing Zuko's eyes with his. "But I'm sure she's with Suki and Toph. I can see a candle in the tent."

"So can I," Zuko drawled. "I'm wondering why you don't know. You have been here, haven't you?"

"Lay off, hot-man," the younger boy dismissed him, holding up a rope with three dead gopher-moles strung on it. "I've been hunting!"

"Did we run out of food _again?"_ Zuko groaned.

"Yeah, well, we go through it pretty fast with all these extra mouths to feed!"

"You mean _your _mouth," Katara's voice cut across the grass. She and the other girls had emerged from the tent and were making their way across camp to join the boys. "Don't I get a welcome home?"

"Katara!" Sokka grinned, rushing to embrace his sister, who stopped him with a firm hand.

"Ewww, no. I changed my mind." She pinched her nose as she glanced at her brother. "Put the gopher-moles down first, then go wash, and I'll _think _about giving you a hug."

Sokka grumbled, but Suki pressed a kiss to her fingers, and then Sokka's cheek, keeping her whole arm span between herself and her stinky boyfriend. "Leave the meat," she smiled. "I'll cook it for you."

Sokka's pouting face brightened at the combo kiss and food offer from his girlfriend. "Deal!" he agreed, and darted off rapidly to clean up.

Zuko sighed and went to unpack while the girls got the cooking under way. Soon the delicious smell of roasting meat was wafting through the tent and making Zuko's sudden hungry stomach grumble. As delicious as smoked cheese-bread was, one peice of toast was hardly enough to fill the still growing prince for very long, and he and Katara had missed lunch.

Once Zuko had his mat lain out, however, he stopped. There was no point in unpacking any further. The thought had hit him, and the minute it did he new it was true, that they couldn't stay there much longer. With his and Katara's venture, the gang of kids had already been in one place too long, and not moving meant waiting for Azula to catch up. Zuko wondered dimly if they had once thought the same thing about him.

He sat down to think, crossing his legs and breathing slowly, as if in meditation, while he organized his thoughts. They couldn't keep moving all the time. Safe places were few and far between, and no where was safe for long. But he _needed _to work with Aang seriously, he saw that now more than ever. He had waisted too much time, and Aang was too far from being ready to face his father. Zuko needed to fix that, fast. They definitely needed somewhere safe they could stay for more than a few days. Preferably somewhere with food, he added with a thought for Sokka's appetite.

"Zuko?" The prince started out of his thoughts as Suki tapped against the rock beside his tent. He pulled open the flap and she started before smiling a bit awkwardly. "Um... dinner."

"Thank you," he stated, noting that the girl was still uncomfortable around him, and wondering if he had the strength to go through dealing with another strong woman who hated him, and what it would supposedly take if he did desire to befriend the Kyoshi maiden.

Not wanting to think about it he returned to his original train of thought.

As he followed the fan wielder, he cast about in his mind. The Fire Nation was his home. Surely there had to be somewhere in it he knew to hide that his family didn't. But alas, every place in the Fire Nation he had been before being banished had been either within sight of the palace (a bad place to take the Avatar) or in the company of his family. It wasn't exactly like he could just waltz into the palace and hide Aang in his bedroom after all. Zuko no longer really had a home there, any more.

Home. The word tickled his mind tantalizingly. Not because he wanted to go back there, but because he felt something about it was eluding him...

"I don't _care _if you're blind!" Sokka was screeching as he and Aang came up the hill to dinner with Toph. "You can't come up behind me when I'm bathing! Suki!" he appealed to his girlfriend. "You tell her!"

But Suki just laughed and tweaked her boyfriend's nose. "She has a point, Sokka," Suki admitted. "What you can't see can't hurt you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" the dripping warrior asked suspiciously as Toph guffawed.

Only once Katara had handed Sokka a plate with stew and some not quite stale bread did he silenced his protest. Aang accepted his without a word and sat down to eat it, though he did smile and chuckle at Sokka's antics. Toph demanded food, and snatched the next plate from Katara, not waiting for Suki before piling it in her mouth. The older girl smiled as Toph chowed down, and Zuko noted dimly that Suki and Toph seemed to have an interesting relationship. But then he shook his head and forced himself to return to the task at hand.

"Sokka," he spoke up, knowing that Aang would make the final decision, but not wanting to press the Avatar just yet. "Please tell me you've thought of where we're going next?"

"Oh, I've thought," Sokka mumbled around a mouthful of food. He swallowed. "I just haven't thought of anything _useful."_

"What's that mean?" Katara prodded, taking a seat with her own food.

"Katara, did I ever tell you how much I missed your cooking?" Sokka asked, with a secretive glance around the campfire. "Toph stinks," he whispered.

"I heard that!" the blind girl shouted, punching Sokka roughly in the ribs. "However... he may have a point. I do really suck at cooking!"

Suki giggled, and Aang snorted some food. Apparently that was an understatement.

"So," Katara repeated. "Where are we going next?"

Sokka sighed. "We need to be somewhere near the Fire Nation if we're still planning to take some course of action before the comet, but there's really no where safe here to hide. And if we go somewhere like the North Pole or Kyoshi Island, it's only a matter of time until the raiders find us and burn more villages." Suki's face tensed. "No, we're better off staying here, tucked up somewhere right under the Fire Lord's nose, so close he won't be looking for us."

Zuko blinked. He was dimly aware of Toph protesting that the Fire Lord was already looking for them in the Fire Nation, and wondering how much further up his nose the had to crawl. But none of that mattered. He had just had an excellent idea.

"Ember Island."

The group stopped talking to stare at him.

"You mean that vacation spot all the rich Fire Nobles want to go to?" Toph asked.

"Yeah," Zuko agreed. "That place."

It was all coming to him so fast now, he was surprised he didn't see it before. He did have a home that was still somewhat safe. And it was everything Sokka wanted it to be, plus food...

Sokka scratched his head. "Why would we want to go there? Won't camping out be rather difficult in such a populated place?"

"No, that's exactly it though," Zuko insisted. "It's so touristy. People come there all the time, from everywhere, so no one really knows each other. I spent a whole week there with Azula, Ty Lee and Mai just, like... a month ago. No body even recognized us! And if they didn't recognize the royal family, even with this," he gestured harshly at his face, "there's no way they'll recognize anyone else. We wouldn't have to hide - we could blend in. Plus, my father has a home there. We could stay in my Ember Island house."

"What?" multiple voices protested in unison, but Katara got off the next words faster, overriding everyone else. "You want us to stay in the Fire Lord's _house?"_

"But it's exactly like Sokka was saying," Zuko insisted. "It's the last place he'll ever look."

Katara opened her mouth to say something else, but Sokka's hand flew up to silence her as he stroked his chin. "No, wait! I think Zuko might be on to something... Hiding there will be completely unexpected, so brazen no one in their right mind would do it." He grinned. "I like it."

Katara crossed her arms as she stared between the two determined young men. She didn't seemed to really be opposed to the idea, but neither was she as excited as the others. Finally she sighed and her eyes darted to the Avatar, obviously knowing where the final decision lay. "Aang?" she asked simply.

The Avatar smiled tiredly. "Well, it would be nice to sleep in a bed..."

* * *

Katara lay back, happy to be home. Aang had helped put everything into perspective. So things in her life weren't perfect. Who was she to complain? She could only do her best, and had to be happy with that. She had done right with Yan Ra, and she would never have to see him again. And she would do right with bloodbending too. Now she needed to concentrate on helping Aang. It was, as it had always been, her job.

With that resolve, she had her feet back on the ground. She had also, finally, come to terms with Zuko. Not a simple desire to be his friend, but real terms with it. There was still much about him she didn't know, and she hoped, someday, to learn it. But she understood him better, and knew that as time went on she would get to understand him more. She was no longer scared by his feelings for her either. Certainly they made things... awkward... and he did place an awful lot of trust on her... But she had determined that the boy needed a friend very much. The confused desperation he had been showing all day, even through their hug, was simple proof. She would do her best for him, just like she would for Aang, and eventually things would be all right between them.

Naturally, there was still plenty to worry about; Sozin's Comet, her father, the war, Aang's training, Azula finding them, etc. But all those things were things she could handle again - or, at least, things she had become accustomed to handling. She just had to keep her faith that things would come out right in the end, and keep fighting to make sure they did. If she did that, it would be okay. It just had to be.

"What's got you so happy, Sugar-Queen?" Toph asked, a teasing smile on her lips. "Have a good little get away with his highness?"

"Ooh, someone's a little jealous," Katara bit back, in too good a mood to let Toph's antics dampen it. She knew the girl was only playing, and while she was never very good at it, she wanted to strive to play back. "Plus, I don't think Zuko would be too fond of that new nick name."

"He doesn't really care what I call him," Toph waved dismissively. "Can't get a rise out of that guy for the life of me!" She grinned wickedly. "All the more reason to try then, right?"

Katara couldn't help but smile back at the girls antics. She normally disproved of them, but she realized she had been missing this happy, family environment a bit. Toph was just the disrespectful, dirty daughter Katara couldn't civilize, and her plotting grin was simply further proof of her pride in that role. "Fine, have your fun," she surrendered. "But don't be too mean, Toph. He's just starting to come around, and we wouldn't want you to scare him off."

"Wouldn't dream of stealing _your _job," Toph teased. "But you do have a point. Princy seems to be getting more used to us every day, and he's been more open since he came back from the trip with you. He and Twinkletoes had a long talk, and I know the two of you hugged for a while on the dock." Katara face flushed again, and this time Toph seemed away despite her absent eyesight. "What did you two do?" she added suspiciously.

Katara opened her mouth to protest the girl's accusation when a soft knocking came from the tent entrance. "We're decent, Princy," Toph called out, obviously knowing Zuko was about to walk in with her earth sense, and she smiled bigger as Katara's face flushed deeper, the little backstabber. "Come in!"

The waterbender struggled in vain to wipe the deepening red from her cheeks when Zuko ducked through the tent flaps with a dignified cough and ducked slightly to fit beneath Katara and Toph's low ceiling. He caught sight of Katara, whose cheeks were a fiery red, and his own face began to color. "Hey."

"Welcome," Toph smiled merrily. When he didn't continue, the girl gratefully ended the awkwardness she had created, and Katara took back her curse reluctantly. She was definitely mischief incarnate, but possibly still a few steps shy of a backstabber... Possibly. "Did you need something?"

Zuko glanced around once, then suddenly folded his legs and sat squarely on the center of Katara's mat, holding out his arm stiffly. She blinked at it and looked up at him. "I'm... sorry?"

"...My hand still hurts," he said simply, as if that would explain everything.

Katara eyed him. She knew he hadn't been using his dao swords as well because he hadn't asked her to heal it, and part of that was on her. She had been too upset to do more than a preliminary treatment the first night, and then too angry at him to continue treatments after that. However she refused to ask him about it. If he intended to be so stubbornly strong as to not ask for help, she wasn't going to force him too.

If he wanted her to heal him, he could at least say it clearly. All he needed was a push. Or in this case a pair of waterbender eyes on him.

After looking at her set expression, he realized what she wanted, and glanced quickly at Toph. Apparently he was still uncomfortable with asking for help, and didn't want to be made to do it for the first time with a witness. Especially one they knew would be all too willing to tease him forever. Katara was just about to relent, happy he had come at all, when Toph figured out what was happening and cut in.

"Ah, give him a break, Sugar-Queen. He's a prince, not a beggar."

Zuko smiled gratefully at the earthbender, and Katara huffed, slightly surprised that Toph had apparently taken her advice not to be too cruel to Zuko to heart. "I didn't say he had to beg. A simple 'please' would have been nice though..." Toph gave her a tooth grin and ducked behind the divider they had erected in the tent.

"Then... how about I trade you for it," Zuko offered gruffly.

"What could you possibly have that I would want?" Katara mocked in a teasing manner, taking his hand and bending some water from her pouch.

"Another question."

Katara glanced up quickly, but Zuko was looking pointedly away from her, his face flushed. Had he really just offered to tell her about his past? "Zuko, I-"

"Only if," he cut her off, "it's still... that's... um, still important to you. To know, I mean."

Was he asking to be let off the hook? No, Katara didn't think so. He wouldn't have offered if he wasn't willing. She glanced back at his hand. "I think I should tell you first that since this hand has gone so long, it has already started scaring a bit. It's going to take more than one healing session. I think..." She glanced up and he met her gaze. She took a deep breath before continuing. "I think if I can work on it once a day for the next week I can get your fingers back their flexibility."

Zuko blinked.

"I know, it's a lot-"

"You think you can make them work just like before?" he asked.

"Yes," she agreed. "But, like I said, it will take more than just one sitting," She looked him once more in the eye, much like a healer would ask of her patient.

"Okay." The prince nodded. "Whatever you feel is necessary."

Zuko being complacent struck Katara as sort of strange. But after everything they went through she was willing to try and accept everything he was.

"Ok, then. I guess we should get started. And about your offer..." She leaned in closer to whisper. "I'll ask you later, maybe?" Katara offered. "When the walls don't have dirty little ears."

"Hey, my ears aren't dirty!" the blind girl's voice drifted across the barrier. "Just the rest of me. Besides, his royal majesty could have a pig's face, and I wouldn't know. What do I care if he's a Scar-Face?"

Zuko scowled and yanked the cloth divider down so he could see the sloppy noble-woman. "I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't call me that."

"Oh, does your new nickname _bother _you, Scar-Face?" Toph cooed in a baby voice that added way more 'w' sounds than were necessary for the words. "Good," she concluded in a more normal voice. "Then I've finally found one I like."

"You can't call me that," Zuko protested.

"And why not?" Toph blinked.

"What if I called you milady?"

Toph's eyes widened in mock affront. "You wouldn't dare!" she cried, jumping to her feet.

"Try me."

Zuko's lips quirked as he gave a half-bow from his seat, making the motion large enough to Toph's earth senses to detect. "As you command, milady."

Katara felt a laugh force it's way out of her mouth in an undignified snort as Toph's face turned an angry shade of red and she launched herself at the prince, who yanked his hand away from Katara to defend himself from the Earth Rumble Champion's tiny little fists and feet. Despite the fact that it was rough housing, it was the first time Katara had ever actually seen Zuko at ease with anyone else, and the prince seemed to be surprisingly into it.

Moments later the much larger bender finally freed himself of the raging child and pushed her to the ground with annoyance. Katara realized they were actually bonding in a strangely boy-ish way - wrestling, and knew immediately Toph wouldn't stay down for long.

"Zuko!" Katara reprimanded quickly. "I am _trying _to _heal_ that hand. Will you please take it off of Toph's disgusting foot and give it here?"

Zuko sighed and released Toph, who promptly kicked him in his shoulder and scrambled away with a huffed, "I'll get you for that, Scar-Head."

"I thought it was Scar-Face?" Zuko frowned, and Toph laughed once more.

"I'll call you what I want, Scar-_Head," _she mocked.

"Will you two stop it already?" Katara tried very hard to keep her own grin off her face. "This isn't exactly an easy thing to do, and you two are just making it harder."

Toph stuck out her tongue at Zuko, and the prince shrugged once at Katara.

"Fine," Toph agreed. "But only since he hits like a girl."

"And you hit like a boy," he countered. "Quite inappropriate behavior, milady, wouldn't you say?"

Toph frowned at him, apparently trying to think of a just punishment for his comebacks. Then her face lit up. "So, I think that since Scar-Face just attacked me, and as Katara is going to get a whole week of questions out of this, that I get to ask Zuko's tonight!"

The prince frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not stupid," Toph interjected. "And it's not like I can't hear through a flap of cloth. Katara heals you, and you answer a question for her, right?"

"Toph," Katara frowned, "I don't really know if that was _exactly_ the deal-"

"Besides," Zuko insisited. "You attacked me."

"And you retaliated!" Toph pointed out. "Therefore tonight, in payback for my torture, I'm stealing Katara's question."

"Toph!" Katara protested.

"How conniving of you," Zuko added his glare. "...I accept."

"What?" Katara screeched as Toph whooped with a greedy look.

"Come on, Katara," Zuko pointed out. "You can still ask your questions some other time. I'm sure that's plenty of personal invasion for you."

"I hadn't intended on asking you more than the one you offered," Katara protested.

"So," Toph grinned, "you did have something you wanted to ask." Katara flushed. "Too late. You'll have to wait til tomorrow. Tonight's my turn." Katara wasn't sure she liked where this was going, but Zuko didn't seem to mind. Toph opened her mouth. "What happened to your-" Katara kicked her, sure she was going to say 'face', but the stubborn earthbender ignored her kick like a flea bite and continued without pause "Uncle?"

Zuko's jaw tightened slightly, though Toph couldn't see.

"Last we heard about the old man, your nut of a sister had captured him, and was dragging him off to face the Fire Lord. He's not with you anymore, so where is he?"

The prince relaxed. Obviously he had been afraid there would be more to the question then there was. Katara noted that, shocked to realize she was already plotting her own six questions. "When I told my father off during the eclipse, I went down to the jail cell to collect Uncle, hoping he'd escape with me," Zuko revealed.

"But he didn't?" Toph prompted.

"How can he? He was no longer there."

"No way!"

"Yeah. There was an Uncle shaped hole in the brick wall, and the guard was in complete shock. If I hadn't been so disappointed I'd missed him, I might have stayed just to stare at it."

"Right through a brick wall?" Toph repeated, excited. "That sounds like earthbender stuff!"

"I don't think so," Zuko countered. "I think he smashed his way through."

Toph looked skeptical. "Iroh? Not that I don't think he had it in him, but... that would be a mighty big hole!"

Zuko actually laughed. He threw back his head and laughed as if he hadn't realized how much he missed his uncle's jokes until that very moment, and was trying to make up for every one of them. Katara smiled as she watched him, and his deep laughter resonated through the whole tent, echoes of it going up his arm and pulsing inside her as well. "That it was," he agreed with Toph, finally. "That it was."

"So, where do you think he went?" Toph prodded.

Zuko shrugged. "I don't know," he answered. "But I have my suspicions."

"We should go look for him then!"

But the prince shook his head. "Being with Aang is more important right now. I know Uncle would say so." But Katara sensed the hesitance back in him again.

"All right," she cut over the conversation. "You're done."

Zuko pulled his hand back and flexed the fingers. "It's already feeling better," he admitted.

"Good." Katara grinned. "Don't be so stiff about asking for help next time then."

"No promises."

She smiled crookedly. "Out with you, then. It's getting late, and Toph needs her sleep. She's a complete _bear _in the mornings!"

The girl grinned wickedly as Katara opened the tent flap to let Zuko out into the cool night air.

"Well, it seemed like you were having fun in there," Katara puffed as the flap fell closed behind her.

"I'm not allowed to do that now?" he asked sarcastically, turning back towards his tent.

Katara shot him an annoyed glance. But she knew how he felt. She felt so much better, so much happier tonight than she had in a long time. She'd tried to participate in Toph's jokes too, after all. Of course, she wasn't good at it, but she had hardly expected Zuko to be so... open.

The prince glanced at her when she followed him across camp, but this time said nothing until she did. Katara nodded to herself. "You know that if you wanted to go look for Iroh... any one of us would go with you. He helped us out, and he's important to you." the waterbending girl folded her arms across her budding chest.

"It doesn't matter," Zuko denied. "I don't want to look for him yet."

"I know I forfeited my question, but... could you tell me why not?"

Zuko glanced at her. "We left not the best of terms... that is since Ba Sing Se. I think he'll find me again when he's ready. If he ever wants to, that is."

"Well," Katara admitted as they stopped beside his tent. "You are a really stubborn person, Zuko, and I'm sure if you want him to forgive you even half as much as you wanted me to, he won't have much of a choice."

Zuko nodded, thankfully. Then he looked down at her. Somehow his eyes were always brighter at night, like fire themselves...

"So, we're good then, you and I?" He inquired in a meek tone.

"Yeah," Katara agreed, hugging him briefly and pulling back before the prince could make any awkward attempts to return it. "And if we're not, we will be," she promised. "Sleep well."

"You too."

Katara turned with a smile, even more sure she and Zuko would be fine now. She would make sure they were.

But first she had to stop by Aang's tent. She had been gone from him too long, and knew he would be restless if she didn't tuck him in.


	37. Chapter 37:Return to Ember Island

**Author's Note:**

**Trombe: Ah, the Ember Island Players...Such an awesome episode, and yet so disappointing at the same time.**

_artsyelric: hey, ember island players is my most favorite episode EVAR! why disappointing? TT_TT_

**Trombe: This is where things start to divert away from canon folks. I mean if the story didn't seem to do it before its definitely going to now. We plan to introduce new elements that weren't really touched upon by the show. And as someone had gladly brought to my attention NO, Zuko is not going to be the end all be all hero of this story. What was told to me was that there have been a bunch of stories where it has the prince of the Fire Nation single handedly defeating his father and bringing peace to the land. That should not be the case. Zuko's story is of redemption. Of himself and his people. It is the Avatar's job to restore that balance. I concur one hundred percent with Bryan and Mike on this.**

_artsyelric: ps, i love our readers. those of you who review totally rock. just thought i'd tell you, you all make my days bright and writing fun. i love talking to all of you, so please, keep reviewing._

**

* * *

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 37: Return to Ember Island**

* * *

"Would you look at the sight of this place? Its sweet!" Sokka shouted from the top of his lungs.

"Pipe down you moron." Zuko berated the exhilarated teen as he walked past them, leading the way to their destination. "This is not a deserted island, you know."

"Does there have to be so much sand? I hate sand..." The blind earthbender grimaced, trying to fix her bearings from the slight vertigo she was feeling._  
_

Zuko stopped for a second only to shake his head in disapproval. "It's a _beach _island. Chances are there's going to be_ sand_."

Toph actually pouted - in a very grumpy manner.

Zuko rubbed his temple as he eyed the tiny, discontent child. These people were unbelievable! And this rag-tag group were suppose to be the saviors of the world? The prince scoffed and sighed, convinced that destiny must have not gotten the memo right.

"Look on the bright side, Toph," Suki suggested plaintively. "Now you have a chance to practice sandbending, and learn how to swim."

The glare Toph shot Suki's torso held the potential to kill with a glance, and very well may have, if the blind girl had simply aimed a bit higher.

Aang glanced at what would soon be an eruption of upset from his fellow twelve-year-old before speaking up loudly. "How much more further is it, Zuko?" The chattering of the Avatar's lemur companion joined in with his master's concern.

It was obvious the heat was getting to the boy. Zuko couldn't blame him. Summer in the Fire Nation was brutal if you were not cooling yourself off in the waters. The young Avatar had kept pace with Zuko for most of the journey. It took some convincing on Zuko's part to try and reason with the boy to leave his spirit companion behind. _We're heading still towards Fire Nation territory. Even if it is summer's ends there's going to be a lot of people there. You're bison's going to give us away. _He told him_, _But the Avatar child refused to leave the great beast once more, telling him he had parted with Appa once and he was not willing to do so again. Luckily Katara took on Zuko's side of the argument and convinced him it was for the best, for everyone and Appa. And so they rode on Zuko's war balloon with the sky-bison trailing not far behind.

"Not far." If his answer was vague, the prince didn't really care; it was the best and most simple answer he could provide, and he continued walking without breaking stride.

"Ach!"

The sudden yelp of Katara's voice made Zuko spin around, concern etched his face, his eyes scanning for any signs of danger automatically.

"Katara!" to his surprise Aang's voice beat his.

"Sorry," Katara had tripped and was now sitting upon the sand, unharmed but embarrassed. "I guess I wasn't looking where I was going." She stuck out her tongue in a befuddling gesture Zuko found surprisingly charming.

Which compelled the prince even more to offer his hand out to her.

"Here."

Only another hand shot out in unison with his.

Zuko eyed Aang, and the Avatar eyed him awkwardly in return.

"Uh..."

"Uh..."

The awkward silence stretched for a moment, tension starting to build. But before either could back down, the issue was suddenly diffused by the waterbender's confused smile.

"Well... Thanks, you two." Katara grabbed hold of both of the boy's hands simultaneously and they both pulled her up effortlessly.

"You should be more careful, Katara." Zuko coughed under his breath and used the excuse to released his hand from hers.

"Zuko's right, Katara," Aang agreed. "You never know if there are any lion-crab lying around anywhere." The boy looked far more excited about tripping over one of these than worried - obviously he had never been pinched by one.

"Uh, I was just going to say to watch out for sharp stones, but... yeah, let's keep an eye out for those too," Zuko humored the boy.

Aang's big grin returned as he began to scout the area for just such a menacing little creature and Zuko watched. At least the boy monk didn't seem as upset as he had the night before. Either that meant he was coming to terms with Zuko's question, or else blatantly ignoring it. Zuko grimaced as the Avatar bounded off. _Yup. Probably already forgotten it on purpose._

The prince sighed angrily and turned his attention back to Katara. Truth be told, he was paying attention a lot more to the waterbender then normal today. Was it his fault he was a hot blooded young man? And who knew a change in wardrobe could have such an effect anyway? He had never seen Katara ware something other than the garb of the Water Tribes. He had never stopped to think that the red and exotic styles of the Fire Nation clothing would suit her so well. So... very well. With her well toned bare midriff, the bracelets she wore upon her slender arms, and the way that choker clung on her lovely neck, it took all he had to just stare. They had certainly gone all out on their Fire Nation disguises.

And it was somewhat a shock to see the object of his obsession dressed so suddenly in the outfits of his home land. It cast her in a different light, and if he was staring now, it had been nothing to the first moment he had seen her dressed so. Zuko reprimanded himself, remembering the encounter and his awkwardly muttered words too well.

_You...you look nice..._

Like she was just some piece of ornament. The prince did not know how his uncle could do it. Or even that babbling fool, Sokka for that matter. Sea pirates, facing corrupt Earth Kingdom troopers, Agni Kai's, and insanely evil siblings he could handle. But to charm a girl? Wasn't his encounter with Jin and his disastrous attempt to impress Mai proof enough? Courting women was something he was never going to be good at. He just hoped her halfhearted _Thanks_ wasn't just something she had said out of polite etiquette.

Katara smiled at Aang's fading back and Zuko's scrutinizing gaze, grateful for the two boy's concern as she dusted the sand off her bottom. For a moment Zuko thought she was looking at him. He never had a chance to confirm it as he turned back around and soldiered on.

"Is that it?" Suki, who had gotten ahead when he stopped, suddenly pointed out a run down summer mansion ahead of them.

Memories of faded laughter and a family he once had resurfaced once more before Zuko could answer.

"Yeah...That's home."

* * *

"What a dump! You would think they would take better care of it," Sokka shared his opinion as he continued to stare at the giant cobwebs that had gathered around the corners of the front door. "You sure the Fire Lord lives here?" he added skeptically, running a finger distastefully over the dust coasted door frame.

"Sokka..." Suki smacked her ignorant boyfriend hard on the shoulder.

"Well, excuuuse me!" He rolled his eyes as he drew out the word. "What a _royal _dump..."

Which earned the boy another hard slap from the Kyoshi warrior.

"It's okay," Zuko assured them nonchalantly. "Nobody has been here in years. I'm not surprised that it's a little run down." He casually walked into the open doorway like he had done so for years and sat his things down upon a dust covered table.

"It looks like it's been ransacked," Sokka exclaimed, pointed at the messy area where Zuko's family portrait had once stood.

The prince flushed slightly. "No, that was me."

Fortunately, Katara interrupted before the stupid boy could open his mouth again.

"Well it's not too bad," she calculated, eying the place optimistically as she bent over to slide her finger across the wall, checking for dust. "We've camped in worst spots then this. I'm just glad to have a roof over our heads for once."

"That is if the roof doesn't cave in on our heads first." Toph snickered, followed closely by Sokka, and she had one palm out in the open, which Sokka readily slapped with his own as the two shared their quirky sense of humor.

"Ha ha, very funny. " Katara rolled her blue eyes drolly. "Seriously, though, it's actually a really beautiful place - just in need of a serious cleaning. Zuko you should-"

Katara glanced around and found the prince had disappeared. "Zuko? Where did he go?"

* * *

Zuko ignored the voices as he continued to walk upstairs, remembering the familiar creaks that each step made. He glanced around room for room, trying to find something. He wasn't looking for anything in particular but being here, in this house, made the prince relive nostalgic feelings. Feelings he had not confronted since the time he was here with Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. Feelings he had run away from.

For a moment he felt a twinge of guilt come across his heart for burning all those possessions that had any connection to his past. But then again, what was left of those possessions besides empty memories? He had outgrown them, like a too small shoe, and they should be allowed to sink into his past now, forgotten, not dragged sharply to surface by useless, aging artifacts. He had left that life.

He found himself in front of a room that time and time again haunted his dreams. This was where his mother, Princess Ursa, used to sleep. Walking in, he found no trace of that warmth he often experienced from his younger naive years. On the contrary, there was no trace that this had even been Princess Ursa's room at all. His father had ordered all traces of his mother to be remove at once, and that included her possessions in their summer villa. Maybe it was better that way.

All that remained was an empty, hollow room. No bed, no drawers, and no familiar laughter.

Zuko closed the door and did not look back as he walked away.

Turning away, he found himself moving to rest on the nook of an open window space that overlooked the beach and held a magnificent view. In moments, he found himself settling into his favorite position, folding comfortably into the familiar setting as if he had never left. His right leg dangled outside while his left knee was tucked in as he leaned his left elbow against it. He was taller, now, he realized, and barely fit in the window, his hair almost brushing the frame. But it was the same too. Maybe he had been wrong to come. There were too many memories, and here they seemed... so real...

"You know, I distinctly remember hearing my father laugh before," Zuko spoke out loud. "It was here on this spot... He was with my mother. That seems so long ago..." His head hung, and he wondered if it was just childish impulse that had encouraged him to speak aloud, or if it was the sense that the house was somehow speaking to him, the desire to speak back.

There was a thump as Aang dropped suddenly onto the ledge next to him, and Zuko nearly swallowed his heart as it leaped into his throat. He had been too caught up in his thoughts to notice where the airbender had dropped from. But the boy seemed to have heard his outburst, as he hooked his arm through the window and stood on the sill beside Zuko, his head leaning just outside it, practically eye level with the lounging prince. "Doesn't that prove that your father is human? That he can love too?" Aang eyes were hopeful at the happy memory of Ozai though it was clear the boy was still hesitant from Zuko's rhetorical question the other day.

_At least he's not completely forgotten it then,_ Zuko thought sardonically. Unfortunately, he had to disappoint the boy. "That proves only that people can change... and that my father is not the man he once was... or rather, he never was..." Zuko answered back with consideration, but assurance as well. "Why did you follow me, Avatar?"

Aang dropped suddenly, perching himself beside the Fire Prince and dangling his own, much shorter, legs. "I don't know," he admitted. "Something just told me to follow you."

"You have horrible senses, Aang." Zuko smiled sadly, the sarcastic tone almost getting lost in his voice. "Have you been thinking about what I asked you?"

The young Air Nomad nodded slightly. "Every waking moment."

Zuko ignored his haunted tone. He wasn't forcing Aang, but spirits help him, the child needed a push.

"Well?" he prompted when no answer came.

"I... I don't know, Zuko. I don't know how I'm suppose to just... kill the guy just like that."

Zuko leaned against the border of the window with his arms folded across his chest. "Well then I don't see how this is going to end happily for the world, Aang. What else do you suppose we should do? Ask the Fire Lord to kindly step down from his throne and halt this war?"

Aang's eyes glared at the scarred prince. "There's no need to mock me, Zuko."

"I think you're the one who's mocking me, Aang. All this time I've been teaching you to firebend and trying to help you fulfill your destiny, and you're not even willing to fight the Fire Lord?" Zuko raised one eyebrow in sheer annoyance.

"Who said I wasn't? I am willing to fight the Fire Lord! But-"

"A duel with him is a duel to the death." Zuko reiterated. "You're an ignorant child if you see it any other way, because, trust me, father _won't._"

Aang paled a bit, surprised either at Zuko's detached tone, or his purposeful use of the word father. But whatever the Avatar's reaction, he quickly controlled it, calmly seeming to revert to his preconceived decision stubbornly. Determined eyes rose up to meet his own. "I am not going to take his life." Aang defiantly stared Zuko down.

The prince sighed and looked away. "So that's how it's going to be." Zuko assessed the situation.

This was going to be harder than he'd thought. Talking with Aang was like having a physical bout with the boy. It always ended up in circles. He purposely ignored talking to the Air Nomad as he continued to watch the beautiful scenery Ember Island had to offer, hoping that it might help him forget the grim reality of their situation. Aang seemed willing to do the same as the boy mimicked what the prince was doing, his head band fluttered with the ocean breeze.

Finally Zuko had enough of sitting and hopped on back inside the window. "I'm done. If you ever figure out the answer, let me know." Zuko left the Avatar with his cryptic message behind.

Walking down the stairs he spotted his four other companions chattering it up.

"There you are! Where have you been?" Katara was the first one to spot him.

"No where," he answered wearily.

She eyed him with that special look. Zuko regretted saying that. He had promise her no more secrets.

"I was... Just looking around the house. It's been awhile. I was... reminiscing." He had answered honestly, and the waterbender seemed satisfied as she gave him a small smile. _Concerned, _he realized. _Does she think I miss home that badly?_

"I see," Katara softly murmured, and the thought of pity fled; it wasn't pity, it was support he saw in her gaze, and he forced himself to remember she still knew practically nothing of his home life after all.

It was then that Zuko had notice that Katara had a broom in her hand and a duster in the other. "Uh... What are you doing?"

"This?" Katara's cheeks turned pink for a second. "Oh, I just saw these lying around... and I thought I could... that is if you didn't mind... I mean, we will have to _stay _here for a while, you know..."

Zuko chuckled slightly under his breath. A stuttering embarrassed Katara was quite charming as well.

"No I don't mind. Please," Zuko gestured with his hand, "feel free."

Katara grinned widely at the prince's approval. "Alright, Well... Suki. Do you mind giving me a hand?"

The Kyoshi warrior looked slightly confused before smiling. "Well, ok. I guess I could help out. Sokka do you think you could-"

The boy stiffened sharply at the sound of his name used in relation to cleaning. "Well would you look at that?" he gasped overly fast. "The sun's close to setting. I should be heading into town and buy those supplies we need." The second the words were out of his mouth, Sokka had darted out of the house completely, leaving a bewildered Suki and a sighing Katara.

"...He left me..." Suki said in disbelief.

"He's always like this when it came to cleaning season back home," Katara assured the girl. "I'd expected no less..."

Zuko personally had no experience with cleaning, but suspected Sokka might have the correct idea about it. Taking his lead from the warrior, he quickly made his excuses. "Right... I'll be out for a bit, Katara. I'll be back by sun down," Zuko calmly told her as he began to make his way towards the door.

"Um, okay. " She bit her lip, trying to hold the sudden impulse to ask where Zuko was headed. But she seemed to shake if off resolutely. "...Take care," she said affectionately instead.

Just hearing her say those words made his ears burn. Zuko sharply bowed his head down, hoping the rest of the room wouldn't see such a change on his face. "T-thanks." He quickly took hold of his cloak and made his way out.

As he had left the house he heard small scurrying feet running through the sand. "Wait up!" Toph shouted after him.

"What do you think your doing?" Zuko asked in annoyance.

"I'm coming with you."

"And who said you were coming?" The Fire prince didn't even stop to wait for the blind girl tailing after him.

"What? And be stuck there cleaning _your_ house? I don't think so. I'm coming with you. Besides everyone had a life-changing field trip with you. Why not me?" She grinned. "So where are we going, Zuko?"

"...The beach."

"Why?"

"So I can think."

"Awww... How come?"

"Because someone has to."

"I thought that was Sokka's job."

Frustration gnawed at the firebender to his very core. "What is with you and all these questions?"

Toph shrugged with those small shoulders of hers. "What? Didn't you offer Katara the same thing? That you'd answer any of her questions?"

Zuko rolled his eyes, as if regretting something he had done. "Yes but-"

"What? I'm not Katara? Is it cause she's pretty and I'm not?"

"Now you're just putting words in my mouth. I never said that-"

"It's cause I'm blind, isn't it? Isn't it?!" Toph dramatically shouted.

"No!" The prince rushed to clarify. "That's not what I-"

But before Zuko could finish apologizing he stopped himself. The blind earthbending master was laughing up a storm. "Haha, I got you," she snorted wickedly. "Your heart was going like a million miles an hour! Bu-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump." She tugged at her chest over her own heart to emphasize, obviously finding some sort of hilarity all her own in what she perceived as his plight.

Zuko's anger simmered silently. Toph had a way of getting under his skin when she felt like it. It was hard not to feed the rage after her constant nettling. Every day it seemed to be getting worse, as she figured him out. It was irksome. So he fixed her with a pointed glare, meaning her to feel it even if she couldn't see it, and prayed his eyes would bore into her. "You enjoyed that way too much," he declared with irritation, his words practically coated with venom.

"Oh, I sure did." The little girl was still giggling as she wiped away her tears of laughter. "C'mon, Princy, you had that coming. Don't think I forgot about your sand comment earlier. Now we're just even. Like before."

Zuko shook his head once more, amazed at her twisted logic, before tugging at the hood of his cloak. While he had confidently expressed the hope that he could walk around in broad daylight on Ember Island without someone recognizing him, he still didn't feel completely secure with the idea, despite the evident lack of recognition he and his sister both had received on their trip just weeks ago. Ember Island was, after all, a vacation spot for the rich and wealthy, the upper echelon who occupied his court. And just because no one had recognized him before - or yet - did not mean that they were not going to.

He was taking no chances.

Besides, he was comfortable with anonymity.

Now if only his petite companion would get the hint and stop talking.

"And then when I was nine I ran away again..." she continued on as the two of them walked.

"Uh-huh...." Zuko's answer was automatic and unresponsive; it seemed like she had been talking for a while now and somehow, he'd missed most of it.

"I know I shouldn't complain. My parents gave everything I ever asked for. But they never gave me the one thing that I really wanted... Their love. You know what I mean?"

Zuko had enough. If the girl came here with him to ruin his brooding and thinking time, then maybe he should ruin hers. The thought manifested immediately, and the words formed. "Look, I know you had a rough childhood and all, but you're just preaching to the choir. And frankly I'm in no mood to listen to your ramblings."

For once Toph didn't had a comeback nor a sardonic remark. She stood there watching Zuko stride ahead of her.

"...This is the worst field trip ever..." Toph blew the bangs that were hanging in front of her eyes.

_Finally! She shuts up!_

But the prince took no further than five steps before guilt hit him. _Damn it_. He regretted it even as he turned around. "Look... I'm sorry that was probably uncalled for..." _Why is it always _my _fault?_ But the disappointed look in the unseeing eyes had him walking back towards the girl anyway. No matter how many times he did this, he was still bad at it. "It seems I've been apologizing a lot lately... But what did you want me to say? There there? You look like you could handle yourself well enough. You don't need me to remind you how strong you are."

Toph's gray mirror-like eyes gazed at Zuko before she spoke abruptly. "You know what, you're right. I don't need you to remind me how strong I am." She seemed to swell at the words and wave a bit of her unhappiness off, apparently now trying to excuse the whole thing. Perhaps it was her trying to put _him _at ease? "I just figured since you were sharing your history with us it was only fair I share mine with you," she surmised. "I'm sorry if you feel that way about your family too though." The comment was so innocent and dismissive, she was even about to turn around and leave before she felt Zuko's arm on her slender shoulder.

"...You _are _strong, Toph. And I'm sorry about your parents... Like I said... I can relate to something like that."

The blind earthbender didn't acknowledge his response and for an instant Zuko was afraid she was going to run away from him. She was certainly tense.

Then, to his surprise, the girl turned around and smiled as she punched him hard in the shoulder. If her frame had been any bit bigger Zuko knew he would have been in trouble, but it didn't mean her current punches didn't hurt.

"...Thanks, Hot-man... for listening..."

Again with the nicknames. But Zuko smiled on the inside. _I guess I could let that slide this once._

"And if you ever tell anyone I shared my...'feelings' with you," the little blind girl cringed at the word, "I'm going to make you wish you were never born."

"Secrets, I can keep." Zuko assured her, now slightly amused they felt the same.

And so the odd pair continued on their trek across the beach, leaving mismatched footprints in their wake.

"So what were you thinking about? You know, before I interrupted you?"

Zuko paused for a brief moment, carefully thinking about how to answer her. There wasn't really a need to sugar-coat his words - after all, she was a much different twelve than the Avatar. "Aang's not going to win this war."

"Huh?"

"The Avatar chose _principles_ over his destiny. He can't win against the Fire Lord with that conviction. And we're running out of time. The comet is on its way."

Toph kept her tongue silent, fidgeting in place. "Uh, Zuko... There's something I've been thinking over, about Aang and the comet-" But before she could finish she bumped into the prince's strong back. "What? Why'd you stop?"

Zuko's eyes were locked upon the bay, a massive _destroyer_ class ship was tied and docked.

"Zuko what's wrong?" Toph continued to grow concern at the silence of her companion.

"Quiet," Zuko commanded, before waving a couple of young girls who were walking alongside the shore. "Excuse me..."

The two were dressed in the latest of Fire Nation swim wear, attires not modest at all and would have made the stoutest of monks blush. They let him approach, conversing in quick, hushed tones, before one stepped boldly forward (slightly pushed by her friend) and smiled dreamily. "Yes?" Her voice was unpredictably deep. "What can we do for you, dark and handsome?"

Abruptly, the two girls giggled and to Zuko's surprise so did Toph, but probably not for the same reason. He would never claim to understand half of what girls were thinking, or why _these _were laughing, but he did know shameless flirting when he saw it. Ember Island was full of it, if he remembered correctly. Zuko suppressed a growl, but was extremely tempted to tuck down the cowl of his hood even more. He opted to cough instead. At least if they liked him (or thought they did) they'd more likely be willing to help. "I was wondering if you knew whose ship this was?"

"Oh that." The girl spared it half a disinterested glance_._ "_The Bladed Lotus_."

_Lotus? _A tingling sensation made it's way up into Zuko's spine.

If Zuko seemed curious about it, the girl just seemed apathetic. "I think it belongs to an Admiral, or something." She blew on her finger nails out of boredom, obviously having expected more from Zuko's address than curiosity about a ship.

"Could you be more specific?" Zuko had no patience with superficial girls like her, but the prince hid his irritation well behind a smile.

"I think he's name is Chan," the girl's friend chimed in, her voice slightly more pleasant. "I don't know really much about him, but his son holds these awesome parties every once in a while. He stays over there." She pointed towards a familiar house that carried a beaten look as if it was still going under some repairs above the shore. The pleasant girl seemed to notice this as well, and frowned. "Except something happened a month or so back, so their still trying fix the place up." Zuko had to wry a grin. Oh this was just too ironic. "I guess parties are off until repairs are complete?" she asked her friend speculatively.

"Who knows," drawled the first girl, returning her attention to Zuko. "We could take you if you'd like. Chan and Ruon-Jian are friends of ours."

"That won't be necessary," Zuko declined, "but thank you... ladies." He bowed to bid farewell, just remembering his manners, and continued to walk on with Toph following closely behind.

His instincts were firing off all of his senses, as if he was close to finding something. It was all too eerily familiar, and he felt like he was missing something blatantly obvious, but... He could almost remember it, a specific image from that house... Something about it compelled Zuko to meet this Admiral. He didn't fully grasp the extent of it or why was he so adamant, but something told him... he was bound to find his answers there.

"What was that about?" the blind girl interjected.

"I don't know," he answered vaguely, answers to questions still half-formed, but materializing. He thrust his hand into his cloak, his fingers grasping, and they closed around the tiny item he'd been searching for. He wasn't sure, but at the same time he had no doubt. Then he was taking his hand out of his pocket, something held within his fist. Ideas were spinning fast now, and he definitely wanted to solve them. Toph seemed to share his curious urge, and he lifted an amused eyebrow at his sudden cohort. "How about we go find out?"

Opening up his palm he revealed a worn out Lotus tile.

* * *

Even through the thickness of the mahogany door Zuko could hear the voices talking amongst each other.

"Dude, answer the door!"

"Why me?"

"Cause it's my house, Ruon-Jian!"

"So shouldn't _you _answer the door then?"

"Just do it!"

"Sheesh! Alright, alright!"

The door cracked slightly to reveal a familiar face. The boy was handsome enough, if a bit conceited from the way he parted his long hair and that smug look on his face.

"Y-y-you!" he exclaimed.

"Hey, remember me?" Zuko smirked; the look on the startled teen's face was priceless.

"L-l-loserboy! What are you doing here?!" Ruon-Jian tried to close the door upon the unwanted guest but Zuko was too fast, wedging his foot between the door and its frame.

"Not so fast there, _Ruon-Jian_," the prince warned the teenage boy. "I've got business with someone in here."

"What business?! You've already wrecked Chan's house! Can't you see the damage you've done?! What more do you want?!"

"Whoah," Toph was getting a bit excited. "You've thrashed someone's home, Zuko? That... is... awesome!!!" Her face lit up like a spark.

"I'd rather not talk about that now, Toph." Zuko whispered to his companion. "Anyway, you're going to let me in."

"What in the name of the Fire Lord makes you think I'm going to let you in this house?!" Ruon-Jian was putting all his strength into closing the big door between them to no avail.

With minimal effort Zuko shoved the door open from his side, causing the teen to stumble down to the ground. Pretty-boys were always so overrated. "Who said I was asking?" Zuko grumbled as he walked over Ruon-Jian's dazed body.

"Pardon me." Toph followed the prince's example as she stepped over the downed teen - though for the tiny earthbender it was a bit of a jump.

"Ruon-Jian, who is it-" a well toned muscular boy about Zuko's age graced into the room but suddenly froze at the spot upon glancing at the two intruders. "N-no..."

"Hey Chan," the prince practically sneered. He realized, belatedly, he was actually having fun. How ironic. Chan seemed completely stressed. "Sorry about the mess. Your friend here was being a little rude in not letting me in." Zuko gestured at the door.

"N-no. Not again. You're not going to thrash my house _again!_ Dad!" Chan shouted out loud.

Good. That was just what Zuko wanted. At least, he thought it was. Beside him, Toph was grinning madly. "Jeez, Zuko. What'd you do? Bully these guys into submission?" she inquired playfully, her blind eyes bright.

"Something like that." Zuko crossed his arms, leaving the mystery and waiting patiently for Chan's reinforcement.

An aged looking man was making his way downstairs. "Now boys, you know I don't like it when you disturb my studies-" The voice cut off abruptly as the speaker seem to realize he had guests. Nothing about him really stood out except for his eyes. Unlike the gold that many of the Fire Nation elite seem to have, his were gray, like Ty Lee's. They were now focused on his son. "Who are these people? Friends of yours, Junior?"

Toph tried to stifle a laugh. "Junior?"

"That's the guy I tried telling you about, Dad!" Chan accused, waving his arm madly at Zuko. "He's the one who wrecked the house! Him and his loony sister!"

Apparently the accusation had been made before and had not been believed, however now that his son had an actual culprit, the old man seemed to seriously contemplate the situation. "Is that right?" The authoritative voice made the old man seem larger in the light as he continued to make his way across the room. The gray eyes captivated Zuko's. "Is what my boy saying the truth, stranger? Are you the one who wrecked my summer home, along with my family's priceless heirlooms?"

Zuko placed a fist below an open palm, the Fire Nation greeting, and bowed, not at all concerned with his previous behaivor. "None other, sir. Are you Admiral Chan?"

The father raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You're an odd one, returning to the scene of the crime, apparently without remorse, I might add. However... yes. I am indeed Admiral Chan of the Eastern Fleet. Now you will tell me, my boy, why I shouldn't have you flogged right here on the spot?"

"Oh you're gonna get it now!" The younger Chan seemed excited at the chance for retribution against the boy who had ruined his party.

Despite the man's intimidating glare, Zuko did not fear him. He knew he was in no real danger of a flogging. _Not today at least._ He stamped out the thought and answered the man by pulling down his cowl to reveal his face. "I've got a feeling you're not that kind of Admiral." At least, that's what he was betting on, because it was immediately obvious the man had recognized him now.

He saw the widening look in the old Admiral's eyes and prayed to whatever spirit he could that this gamble of his payed off.

Fortunately, the surprised man did not reveal him. Yet. "I see," he considered. "Well why don't we continue this discussion elsewhere?" Admiral Chan hesitated for a moment before regaining his composure and gestured at the stairs.

"What?" Chan junior gasped, clearly ticked the situation had not gone as he expected.

Zuko nodded before glancing back to his companion. "Toph, stay here. I'll fill you in on the details later," he added as she opened her mouth to protest.

The blind earthbending master pondered his promise for a second before replying back with a thumbs up. "Well, it's not like I've got anything better to do. But don't take too long with whatever this is. I get easily bored, you know."

"You heard her, Junior," the Admiral prompted as Zuko followed him past his son and towards the stairs. "Entertain this young lady while I talk to your friend over here."

"But dad-" His complaints fell on deaf ears as the Admiral climbed the steps and disappeared from view. "Uhg..."

As Zuko assended, he resisted the sudden urge to hesitate and watch Toph's fun. As it was, her voice followed him up the stairs.

"Junior is it? Well buddy I got a feeling we're going to get along juuuuust fine..." The prince could almost see her wicked smile without turning, but he controlled himself and turned instead towards the door the Admiral was now opening.

The room beyond it seemed like a Scholar's domain. Maps of the Four Nations were sprawled everywhere, models of Fire Nation machination littered one table, countless books and journals were stacked like a bibliophile's wet dream, and then finally the flame of the Fire Nation etched into a finely woven tapestry. Chan was so at home it was obviously the old man's study. The man was still considering his visitor cautiously. "Usually I'd offer my guest a seat first... but I'm not quite sure what the protocol is with traitorous princes." Zuko tried not to wince, and the Admiral glanced at him once before finally lamenting and gesturing to a chair in offer of hospitality.

Zuko only sat after the Admiral such as custom would dictate it.

"Thank you, Admiral," he remembered his manners.

"You do know, Prince Zuko, that I am ordered by the laws of our nation to turn you in for your crimes. And I don't mean what you did to my home." Apparently the old man had a sense of humor as he chuckled to himself softly before returning an intense gaze.

_This is it, Zuko. You better not have screwed this up.  
_

Zuko eyed the room once more before spotting an object that guaranteed his gamble. "Admiral... are you fond of games?"

The question was obviously not expected, and the gray eyes blinked, as if contemplating an answer. "It depends on the games," the old man mysteriously replied.

"Well I see you have a Pai Sho board over there," Zuko suggested, feeling muscles in his stomach tighten. "How about a game then?"

If Chan suspected what Zuko was about, he didn't let on. "Another odd request?" The man sighed as if put out, and Zuko wondered if it was an act or if he was wrong. "Very well," he conceded. "I suppose one game wouldn't hurt before I turn you in."

So they began setting up the board, Chan with the calm and efficiency of one who had played the game a thousand times, Zuko carefully containing growing nerves. However, it wasn't long before Prince Zuko found himself sitting across from the Admiral, the round Pai Sho board placed readily between them. It was time to play.

"The guest always have the first move," the Admiral offered.

A sense of de ja vu filled the prince before he finally took the initiative, placing a tile he knew would hold deeper meaning if he was right about his opponent.

"...Hmm... The White Lotus Gambit? Aren't you bold." Zuko fought back a relieved grin. The Admiral's words fit. Zuko must be right! "And here I thought the old ways were dead," he added as he folded his arms across his chest.

Zuko found himself remembering the words his uncle had spoken many months ago in the desert waste of the Earth Kingdom. As the voice spoke clearly in his head so too did the words flow from his mouth. "Those that do can always find a friend. Right, Admiral?"

A smile crept its way over the Admiral's face and the gray eyes sparkled, as if finally revealing himself for the first time. "Then let us play, my Prince."

Tile after tile, the two moved with grace and efficiency that normally were not seen in a patient game like Pai Sho. Neither player was striving to win, after all, but rather following a ritual Zuko had seen played out only once before. Soon enough they had formed a blooming Lotus bud with the final lotus chip harmoniously placed in the middle.

Zuko paused. The only time he had witnessed a meeting like the one he was trying to create, the procedure had been interrupted by bounty hunters. He hoped he hadn't miss something vital. Thankfully, Chan spoke again.

"I thought there was something odd about you. It would seem your uncle has taught you well." Admiral Chan appeared surprisingly relieved. "Well then... The White Lotus always opens wide to those who know its secrets." He bowed in his seat, lifting his hands as if unveiling something within, and spoke with a sense of grandeur. It was not everyday that members of the White Lotus met in person. "Welcome, Prince Zuko."

Zuko bowed once to show his respect, mimicking the hand motions as he turned his palms outward. "I am honored..."

"Tell me, my boy, as I am quite curious... how did you know to seek me out?"

Zuko could only tell him what he had believed himself. "I just had a feeling. When I was here last time I got... quite a good look at the house." He hoped dearly he wasn't flushing. The crime which had bothered him none at all downstairs was suddenly thrown into a harsher light. But the Admiral smiled as if the joke had been all in good fun and the prince rushed on. "I don't recall exactly what triggered the thought, but I remembered seeing a lotus in your house, and I just hoped... Guessing that it was you once I arrived was just luck."

The old man grinned and chuckled once more. "Heh. Not luck," he corrected, still smiling. "Intuition. A fine trait in a fellow member." His small laughter died and Admiral Chan gazed at the prince with all the weight of his seniority. "I take it you have business with me then. What can I do for you?"

Zuko breathed a small sigh under his breath, feeling as if a heavy burden had lifted itself from his chest.

"Questions," he stated as calmly as he could. "Questions that need answers."


	38. Chapter 38:Questions

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: Happy Holidays! i'm going to be a looser writer and use them as an excuse for not updating for a while - lame, i know! but at least we have a looong chapter for you!_

_speaking of which, trombs, i finished reading all the way down to the final section, but your sister just got to my home from the con. and she's got a prize for her costumes again, so i can't finish. you are in charge of the last bit! (everyone thank him too, because he's the one pushing to get it out tonight for you - huzzah!)  
_

**Trombe: Happy Holidays everyone! Yeah I know it's late but the holiday season was busy for both of us. I went to Vegas, Artsy had to spend time with her family. To all our reviewers thank you again. I just love the part where some of you think we're professional writers. Sadly no, we're just somebody(s) who really loves our shows. Well then let's not dilly-dally and let's get this started.  
**

_artsyelric: hope i don't get slow here - i've got jury duty this week, and i've got some more temporary work on top of it, so sorry if i've been falling behind. damn the way the world revolves around money!_

**

* * *

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 38: Questions**

**

* * *

**

He'd come in search of answers, answers Zuko desperately needed to hear. Instead what he found were more questions.

And those were things he could have done without.

The trek back felt longer, somehow. His feet heavy with doubt and his heart gripped with uncertainty. Even the comforting ocean breeze did little to ease Zuko's discomfort.

"Oh man, that was fun!" the earthbender grinned widely. "I haven't ordered around anybody else like that since I was back home in the Bei Fong estate. But that Junior sure can sing an awkward tune. I thought I was going to pee myself from laughing!" Toph's delightfully good mood contrasted almost painfully with Zuko's somber attitude.

She looked towards him in annoyance that he didn't share her obvious excitement.

"What's the matter, Hot-man? You've been quiet ever since we left that admiral's house," the blind earthbender pointed out casually, as she strove to keep up with Zuko's widening pace.

Her voice seemed too far away in the distance as Zuko's mind was elsewhere.

_"Questions. Questions that need answers."_

_"Ah. Well... Every man has questions, my prince. It is a simple fact of life. It is what the men and women of the White Lotus strive for. But somehow I have a feeling that your questions are not of the philosophical kind." The admiral's eyes shifted for a moment before returning to the prince._

_Zuko was adamant in his stance. No, his questions were more of the definite kind, parameters and all._

_Eventually the older man gave in. He sighed, crossing his fingers beneath his chin, and nodded to his guest. "Very well. Ask."_

_Zuko did not hesitate. "Do you know where my uncle is?" __His first question had been burning on his tongue for ages it seemed._

_A tilt of a head. Could mean anything... "I might have an inkling as to where your uncle is but I cannot say for sure." The old man was stroking his beard in a easy manner._

_"Then do you know if he is safe?"_

_"Perhaps."_

_He heard more than felt his teeth grind. The man was deterring from the answers! Zuko did not know if he was doing this on purpose or not. All this roundabout wordplay was already getting him agitated, and patience was never one of Zuko's shining virtues. "What about the Fire Nation?" he persisted. "My father? You're an admiral. Do you know what the Fire Nation is planning?"_

_"I think you already know the answer to that, Prince Zuko."_

_"You said ask!" he growled._

_ He felt almost as if he had been cheated by the statement. __This man had all the answers, he knew it! They were so close, and yet he was being denied the answer!  
_

_"Indeed," the man admitted. "But I did not say that I would give an answer."  
_

_He could only take so much before his temper got the better of him. "Then what good are you?!!" he raged, moving with fury from his chair. The admiral raised an eyebrow, nothing more. For a second longer anger had the best of him, before sense returned to him. He forced himself to be aware of it, and slowly, he stopped it. His contorted face relaxed and he dropped back down into the chair. He had sworn never to let anger control himself like that. "...Sorry..." The muttered apology would have to suffice to cover his slip.  
_

_But the other man seemed faintly amused if anything. "It's the fire that burns in your blood. You're definitely Fire Nation royalty." Admiral Chan chuckled slightly. "I am sorry, Prince Zuko, if it seems I can't answer most of your questions, but the order of the White Lotus stands for those who can find those answers themselves. Until you've figured out your own questions... we cannot help you."_

_The prince took a deep breathe and chose his words carefully. "I should have figured as much," he grumbled. "If Uncle was ever anything it was cryptic." The man smiled as if he had made some joke, and Zuko tried to organize his thoughts desperately - he may never have another chance like this. "Then answer me this at least: What is the White Lotus?"_

_"Rest assured, my prince," the admiral promised, "we do not share the genocidal dictatorship that your previous fore fathers have cultivated. The Order transcends all nations, all boundaries. We seek truth, justice, and the natural order of things. Be it through martial means or with the stroke of a paint brush."_

_"So that makes you... what?" Zuko pondered, noting that once again his question had not truly been answered but left for him to solve as if it were a riddle. He sighed, and ventured his best guess. "Philosophical warriors? No wonder I can barely understand you." Zuko sighed in surrender. _

_"Something like that." The admiral smiled, and Zuko realized that was almost an answer - or as close as he thought the man would come that night. "It's not that I want to keep you in the dark, Prince Zuko. As an initiate of the White Lotus you have a right to know. But your uncle, the grandmaster, has instructed me so. He instructed all of us, actually. He knew you were not foolish. It was only a matter of time before you came seeking us once more. He only wanted to be the one to tell you."_

_"So he is alive and well." Zuko's face lit up for a moment.__  
_

_Perhaps it was that expression that finally softened the old man's heart. "Yes," he answered plainly. "He is well and hidden."_

_ It was a single piece of good news, but it was enough.__ Zuko's smile turned fond.__ "I'm... glad." Then the momentary feeling of relief had come and gone. With its passing came a multitude of new questions."But why?" he wondered. "Why hide, then? Why tell you to tell me nothing? Am I not suppose to know?"_

_"He's waiting, my prince." Admiral Chan clicked his tongue as he gestured at the Pai Sho board before them. "Waiting for the right moment. "_

_"...I swear, you old geezers all think the same." Zuko was left with little choice but to accept the old man's answer. At least it was better than his own reasoning. He felt somewhat defeated. "So you're basically telling me what I already know. What a waste of a trip."_

_"Not completely, my prince. I would say you're a little bit closer to the truth and one more step nearer to where you want to be." _

_"Yeah, yeah. You could stop the White Lotus mysticism now. I understand." Zuko waved his hand in dismissal. "But then I don't get it... my gut told me to seek you out, and yet none of my questions have been completely answered."_

_"Haven't they?" The old Admiral smiled once more._

_"...I really hate it when you do that," Zuko's stated nonchalantly._

_Which made the senior White Lotus member laugh. "Oh come now, my boy. What's life without a little mystery?" _

_"Something that would make sense," Zuko muttered under his breath._

_"Ahem, well I can tell you one thing," Admiral Chan coughed. "We know of the sacrifices you have made. And right now it would be best for everyone if you and the Avatar would stay the course."_

_"How do know about-"_

_"Young man, when you get to live as old as I am you tend to hear things no one does. News travel fast... especially for secret sects like ours." he chuckled_. _"Have a little faith in yourself. And in your friends. The Avatar is alive and well. We all still have a chance to turn this war around."_

_"For all our sakes, sir. I hope you're right."_

"Hello? Zuko?"

"Oh..." He had finally noticed that Toph was trying to get his attention as she waved her hands in front of his face. "Sorry, I was sort of lost in thought."

"What did you guys talk about?" Zuko's distracted state made her want to know more on what went on in that room.

"A lot of stuff that don't make any sense," he finally admitted.

"...Well that's old people for you," Toph casually surmised as she stretched her arms out and folded them behind her head.

"Tell me about it," Zuko agreed.

"Still... What were you doing there-"

"I'll explain later. But for now... can we just... not talk? I... I've got a lot on my mind."

Toph fell silent for a bit before grudgingly agreeing to the request. "Sure thing, hot-man."

* * *

"So you see what I'm saying then?" Katara asked, waving her cooking spoon at her brother. "I just can't see us being ready - any of us."

Sokka nodded as he continued unpacking the food he'd bought. Momo's head popped out of the groceries as he snagged a treat and Sokka tossed him aside in a disgruntled fashion. The lemur chattered angrily at him as it spread it's ears and glided off, food still clutched in it's paws. Sokka scowled at him before turning back to his sister. "You're right. I hate to admit it, but you are. It's strategical suicide to attempt something within the remaining time frame anyway. He'll be expecting it..."

"What should we do?"

Sokka's hands paused, hovering over the pile of food with uncertainty. "We can't let him get the comet," he answered resolutely. His eyes, however, were desperate. "We just can't." He grabbed up a roll of food and started moving again. "Think of all the damage it would cause..."

"Damage?" Katara asked, turning on him. "Who's he got left to hurt?"

"I don't know."

"I mean, Ba Sing Se is gone, Omashu too, the Nothern Water Tribe won't put up much of a struggle with our without the comet, and half of Kyoshi's warriors are imprisoned or away, just like all of our friends. What more can they do with-"

"Don't talk like that!" Sokka slammed his fists onto the counter which caused Katara to jump slightly. "Just... don't, Katara. You're the one who's supposed to be full of hope and stuff."

"I know, but... I'm just trying to be realistic..."

"That's my job," he brother teased weakly.

Katara chewed on her lip as she met Sokka's eyes. _He seems so much older... When did that happen?_ "I'm... afraid." The words slipped out before she could stop them. She didn't mean to worry him, but she was never good at not being honest. "He's not ready. If we go in there now... If we loose Aang..."

Sokka's hands closed around hers. "It's all right," he promised. "We'll think of something." She glanced back over at him, and saw his eyes were still to heavy, too old. "I won't let him die. We'll wait if we have to. But don't worry over it today - or ever, Katara. It's Aang's decision, not yours."

"You'll talk to him then?" she asked, relieved.

Sokka nodded, accepting the chore. "I will. Promise. Now how about some grub?" The spark returned full force and his eyes glinted with something just so Sokka it made Katara smile hopelessly. "I'm starving!"

"It's coming," she grinned, slapping at his hand with the wooden spoon when he tried to sneak it past her and into the rice she was cooking. "Behave."

"Never," he grinned back.

She snorted. "Well then, at least fetch the others. If I serve with only you in the room, no one else will get anything to eat."

"Yeah, yeah." But he went off in search non the less.

* * *

It had been sundown when Zuko and Toph returned. He had been in no mood for questions or cordial greetings as he walked blindly pass Sokka's casual wave and Katara's chipper hello. If it ever annoyed or irritated them Zuko couldn't tell by the way they made about their usual business. Toph had listened, even though Zuko wasn't much of a talker, so now he just felt a bit tired and frustrated with the whole day, and dinner pleasantries weren't on his list of ways to feel better. Zuko promised himself he would make it up to them later. For now his attention was fully occupied elsewhere as he walked upstairs and resigned himself to the open balcony it provided. To think and to ponder once more.

Or so it would seem.

Try as he might nothing came up on the prince's mind. No stratagem, no epiphany, no answer.

With a heavy sigh and a deep grunt Zuko had finally given up on thinking. His head was pounding, his temper flaring. He needed a break.

The prince did not know what he was planning to do but all he knew was that he needed to stop thinking for a moment.

As he made his way down the stairs he spotted shadows from the dining area of the house. His curiosity won out in the end and his feet followed. The sound of familiar voices and laughter echoed into his ears and the jovial sight of his friends eating greeted him.

Two sets of blue eyes, one unfocused gray pair, and (in Zuko's opinion) the only naturally looking brow pair met his. Blue eyes were so foreign to him, and it wasn't just Katara - she was watching her cooking rather than him and he was still facing off against both Sokka and Suki's watery gazes. "Hey, you came down," Sokka greeted. "At the right time too; Katara's just about done with cooking our food. Hungry?" Sokka grinned widely, his palette already full of many food delights and not surprisingly meat.

"...Uh... sure I guess," Zuko answered half-heartedly; food was no where near his thoughts moments before, but with the air filled with the savory aroma of a hot meal the prince was not about to deny himself a hearty dinner.

"We tried calling you but you wouldn't answer so we figured you were asleep," Aang chimed in from across the table as he eagerly waited for his portion, minus the meat of course.

"I tried to tell them really that eating in the house without the host is kind of rude but... well, we were pretty hungry," Katara smiled at him as she prodded some of the food she had going on the indoor fire pit. "Sorry, Zuko." She grinned guiltily, in a near replica of her brother's usual expression.

"I don't mind," Zuko casually replied as he found an empty place in the table beside Sokka.

Despite himself, the prince found his lips curling into a grin as he watched the waterbender cooking, a ladle in her hand and a bowl in the other. It was quite a pretty picture. "You figured out how to work that fast," he commented, gesturing at the fire.

Her smile turned more natural. "Thanks. But I had to have Aang light it with firebending though." She blushed lightly. "Not a spark rock to be in the whole house."

"Spark rock? Now what would any self respecting firebender be doing with a spark rock?" He rolled his eyes in an attempt at a dry joke.

"That's what I figured out after I'd been searching for an hour," Katara huffed but found herself playing along with Zuko's joke. "Now shut up and eat," she added, pushing him towards the table.

"What's this?" Toph was demanding, picking at the strange new food she could smell and sense but not see.

"Chicken-goose," Zuko answered, frowning at all the almost familiar food. "It's much better with sauces though. Didn't you buy any, Sokka?"

"Eeyy baht latsa sturf."

Suki giggled as she slapped her boyfriend's back. "Come again?"

"I said, I bought lots of stuff," Sokka swallowed painfully around a huge bite. "I just didn't know what most of it was."

Zuko shook his head. Katara had cooked most of the meal without knowing what it was either, that much was apparent. Though it was still edible. And it was certainly a fair notch better than Water Tribe food. He'd missed good Fire Nation food, though he'd become far less picky in his banishment.

Realizing how sorely in need of a firebender's touch they were, he set about rummaging in the stocks Sokka had purchased and managed to find some sauce. It was honeyed rather than spiced, but it was still good when he poured it over his chicken-goose. Pleased, he offered some to Aang, who sampled it excitedly. Momo climbed out of his shirt to sample some as well, but the lemur hissed after the first bite and snatched a piece of fruit before setting on top of Aang's chair to devour it. Aang smiled at him before popping another bite into his mouth thoughtfully.

"My friend Kuzon used to have some sauce that burned my tongue," the boy reported, his merriment a clear sign that he considered Zuko's and his previous conversation permanently closed.

"Kuzon was your friend in the Fire Nation a hundred years ago, right?" Katara asked, joining them at the table and pouring Toph some sauce.

"Yeah." Aang sighed. "I miss him."

No one really knew what to say. Whoever this Kuzon was, he had lived a hundred years before any of them. An odd silence filled the table.

"So, how did the cleaning go?" Toph asked, if just to end the quiet - anyone who knew the girl in the slightest was well aware she didn't care at all about cleaning of any type.

"Not that well," Suki admitted, and Katara nodded enthusiastically.

"Well, you can't blame us really. This place is huge!"

"It's just a summer home," Zuko frowned around his food; she was speaking as if the place was far more amazing than the prince found it. "It's not like it's a palace, Katara."

"It's far bigger than our house at Ba Sing Se, that's for sure," Aang put in. "Though Bumi had some pretty cool vacation spots in Omashu..."

Katara shook her head at all of them. "Well, whatever the case, it is _filthy_ here. Suki and I have been cleaning all day, and we've only finished the downstairs." She set her food down with a petulant look. "We could use some help."

Sokka and Toph's faces blanched, but Suki overrode them, her tone somewhat apologetic. "Oh, and Zuko, it's not just dirt. I think someone trashed a fair amount of the back rooms." Once again, color rushed unwelcome to the prince's cheeks. He remembered his own rage when he'd left Chan's house the last time and found himself coming back here. Most of the 'missing' and 'trashed' stuff Suki was talking about had fallen by his own hand and become fuel for the great bonfire he had built on the beach. "There's scorch marks I can't get off too," she added, still sounding as if she was giving him bad news he hadn't been ready for. "We pretty much had to give up on everything but the sitting room, the kitchen, and the front room. All the bedrooms are useless, and we haven't even started cleaning upstairs yet."

"No bedrooms?" Toph protested, giving Zuko the chance to keep quiet on the 'vandalism' subject. "Lame. I was looking forward to a bed..." She stabbed at her food in an unhappy manner.

"Yeah," Sokka agreed wistfully. "Me too..."

"Hey!" Katara frowned at them. "What we meant was, you have to help clean them, not you can't have them." Sokka's face looked shocked and disgusted, and Toph stuck out her tongue while Aang laughed, nearly choking on his food in the process. "Plus, I don't know how many more rooms there are up there, so we'll need help."

"We'll still fit," Zuko huffed. He'd hoped not to have to use the upstairs, since they had been his family's rooms, but he supposed it was his own fault anyway. "As long as two people don't mind sharing, everyone should get their own room." He noticed Katara's jaw was open. "What?"

She shook her head. "This place _is _huge."

Zuko shifted uncomfortably, remembering the small huts Katara and the Southern Water Tribe had called home. Still, she'd been all around the world. Surely she'd learned what real splendor was? _I suppose the house suddenly seems bigger when you have to clean it,_ he realized. _Maybe that's why we stayed at Lo and Li's when we came last time. This place is a giant dirtball, even if I hadn't destroyed half of it. Just a place of empty dreams..._

Fortunately, Aang answered for him. "Actually, Katara, a lot of the houses here are even larger. I saw some when I was flying-"

"Aang! You shouldn't do that!"

"-and some were even bigger than this. And no one saw me!" he protested in sharp, child tones. Then his face brightened. "You should come flying with me," he suggested hopefully. "It's really beautiful here, and if you think this place is big, you should see the inn I saw just inland."

Zuko let the blabber wash over him. He'd had a debatable successful night at Chan's, but whatever confusion the visit itself had planted in his mind, it had reminded him a bit forcefully of his uncle's absence. He missed the man. And now he would be forced to assign upstairs rooms... He brooded darkly over the matter, telling himself it wasn't nostalgia. There was also the problem of Aang to deal with. Somehow the boy would have to see the need to finish Ozai once and for all. There had to be a way to do it without pushing him...

A dark idea began to form in Zuko's mind.

* * *

Katara waited until after everyone finished dinner and dishes had been cleaned before herding everyone upstairs, despite Sokka and Toph's attempts at escape. "Oh, come on! Suki and I have been cleaning all day! The least the rest of you could do is help clean up your _own _bedrooms."

"I like mine filthy!" Toph protested. "There, I'm done."

Katara scowled at her, and the girl must have sensed it, because she folded her arms with a disgruntled comment about Katara being worse than her mom, and stomped loudly up the stairs after Zuko.

The prince, at least, seemed to be a bit brighter now that he was playing host (despite the filthy house). When the upstairs had first been brought up in conversation Zuko had seemed a bit upset, and then he got flustered when she talked about the house, but now he seemed normal again (which meant a small scowl, but really that he was cautiously happy and somewhat unsure), and perhaps a bit... nervous? Katara shook her head. At least she was beginning to read his emotions. The changes were so subtle, she had missed them at first. Now that he now longer raged or shouted, she found understanding him more difficult. But as he opened up to her she began to understand him better, and she could see the faint changes to his stern face that signaled his hidden feelings. She just had to pay close attention. Real close.

"Okay," Zuko spoke loudly so everyone could hear him. "Six rooms upstairs guys. The first two are guest rooms, so they're probably the cleanest. They're up for grabs."

Eyes lit up brightly at the mention of less cleaning work, and Sokka's hand closed instantly on the left door nob, as if daring someone to push past him.

"Mine!" Toph shouted grumpily, latching onto the other one and practically kicking it open.

Sokka's hand started up into the air. "Can Suki and I-"

"No." Katara glared at him. "You get your own. Besides, you snore the loudest of everyone, so I think you should take a room on an end."

"I do _not, _Katara!" he protested. She lifted an eyebrow, fighting to hold back a chuckle. "Okay, well I snore," he relented. "But not _that _loud!"

Katara just scoffed, since everyone knew the truth. Sokka could snore himself awake if given the chance.

"Don't close the door yet!" Zuko stuck his foot in Toph's door as she tried to slam it.

The earthbender shot daggers at Zuko's stomach. "I don't have to clean if I don't want to."

"That's not why I'm stopping you," the prince droned. "I want everyone to finish listening to me first." The tiny girl rolled her eyes, but stepped out into the hallway anyway. Katara blinked at how well Zuko seemed to handle her anymore. Toph was actually differing to him! _Wish she'd listen to _me _like that..._ "Okay, so the second room on the left I think would be the best suited for Katara and Suki to share."

"But wait," Aang protested. "There are six rooms, and six of us. Why does anyone have to share?"

"I'll get to that," Zuko answered vaguely. "But I suggested they share because, well, here girls. Take a look."

The prince swung the door open and stepped back to let Katara and Suki peer in. Katara felt her breath catch. The room was gorgeous! It was coated in a layer of dust, to be sure, but beneath that was a gold mine. An extremely large bed in red and gold trim with drapes filled a corner of the room, plenty big enough to hold both girls comfortably, and an ornate mirror tall enough to stand in front of sat at the foot. There was a small hand tub that could be filled with water beside the bed table, and it was surrounded by shelves of towels, soaps, perfumes, brushes, face, lip and eye paints, creams and shampoos in a quantity and variety Katara hadn't seen even in shops. Another small mirror was there as well. There was also a book shelf filled with literature, a large window that displayed a small balcony with an ocean view, some comfy looking chairs both outside and in, a tiny fireplace, and... "Katara!" Suki gasped.

She was peering in a small door in the corner of the room, and Katara, who had been blinking around the room, moved quickly to her side. "What?"

"Closet," was all her friend managed to articulate.

When Katara stepped into the small room, she knew why. It felt as if she'd swallowed her tongue.

There were outfits from wall to wall of the small room, on all three walls. Both girls could fit inside the room and close the door if they had wanted, and then they'd be surrounded by clothes. And not just any clothes. Rich clothes. Easily the equivalent to the garments she had worn with Toph to the Earth King's party back in Ba Sing Se, every one of them. There were dresses, formal attire, traditional wraps, swim suits, beach ware, even combat attire. The clothes came in every hue, but the vast majority were in Fire Nation reds, yellows and blacks. Shoes lined the walls beneath the clothes in as plentiful of styles as the outfits, everywhere from metal tipped boots, to hiking thongs, to delicate party shoes. The far wall held a small table with yet another mirror, as well as drawers, which opened to Suki's gentle tug to reveal a jewelry collection matching in splendor.

Behind the door and to its immediate sides were hanging shelves with an assortment of, surprisingly enough, weapons. Daggers, delicately carved, swords in golden sheaths, throwing knives, even a war fan, a quarter staff and a spear had a place on the side of the entrance. Katara discovered that the clothes hanging on all the walls were topped with another shelf, and there were pieces of armor arrayed on that. Shin guards, arm guards, light weight breastplates, and a sparring helmet were visible. But further down the room, the items on the high shelf returned to elaborate clothes. There were even hair ornaments and a line of sashes on the top of the wall of clothes, bags and purses on the far wall above the jewelry, and a collection of hats, gloves (some with armor, some with lace) and a few cloaks displayed on the third.

Behind them they heard a high whistle as Sokka strolled into the room. "And I thought my room was nice. You girls got it made!" He stuck his head in the closet where his girlfriend and sister were gaping around, and whistled again. "Man, Zuko, did you have to give them the princess room? We'll never get them out!"

"Where'd this all come from?" Suki whispered, and Zuko barked a coarse laugh outside.

"Like it?" he asked, his eyes sparkling as they met Katara's, completely bypassing Suki's, and she was already breathless. But then his gaze hardened a bit. "'Cause Sokka's exactly right. Welcome to the Princess Room, vacation residence of my lovely sister."

Whatever breath Katara did have rushed out of her lungs. "This is _Azula's _room?" she gasped.

"What?" Zuko frowned. "Did you think it was mine?" Katara didn't know what to say to that. "Anyway, what's hers is yours, if you fit it. Feel free to take anything. She hasn't been inside here in years..."

Seeing the subtle shift in mood as Katara tried to adjust to staying in _Azula's bedroom_ and drooling over her clothes, even considering - _oh, spirits, can I? -_ wearing them... Her head spun and she shook it once before following the others to the bedroom door. Suki's small frown said she was thinking the same thing as Katara. _Azula's_... But on the other hand, she could have _any _of it... She ground her teeth in frustration. Zuko was right though. Sleeping in that room and being happy about enjoying the mean-spirited princess' things would be much easier in shared sisterhood, and there was plenty of room for both of them. She wondered if it was wrong to be getting excited about.

Aang backed out of the door to let everyone file back into the hallway, and Zuko stepped straight across the hallway and opened the opposite door. "Aang, you can stay here. If you need any Fire Nation clothes besides that school uniform of yours though, you'll have to come to my room. We haven't been here in a while, but I might still have some stuff that'll fit you."

"Yay, hand-me-downs," Aang noted dully, eying his room suspiciously, but Zuko just shrugged and extended the offer to Sokka as well.

Katara peered into the room. It looked decent enough, comfortable even. It was a rich red, with a warm looking bed, and Fire Nation banners on either wall. There was a balcony here as well, and a small wash tub and fireplace. It was much sparser than Katara's room, though there was a book shelf, half-empty and mostly technical and war related books, but still... Overall, it was much grander than a sleeping bag on the dirt or Appa's furry side. Momo approached his new shared living space cautiously, gliding in a slow loop around it once. After the circuit, he dropped onto the bed and let out a surprised squawk when it bounced. Katara glanced at an ornate double door on the left wall.

Aang's gaze followed her. "Lemme guess?" the Avatar grinned. "Another closet?"

"Wrong." Zuko's gaze went back to Aang's. "Those doors lead into the last room," he said, stepping back into the hall and gesturing at the final door on the right side. "Actually, I'd really prefer it if everyone stayed out of that one."

"Why?" Toph asked from the end of the hall.

Zuko's jaw tightened. It was very slight, but Katara noticed it now like he had frowned or screamed. Instead he just spoke, his voice sounding tightly controlled.

"It was my mother's."

The comment hung in the air, and suddenly it seemed a few degrees colder.

Zuko broke the silence he'd caused abruptly. "The door on the left is my room." He cleared his throat as the others shook out of their stiffness and relaxed slightly. The chill slowly went away. "Every bedroom has a fireplace in case anyone gets cold. There's one in just about every room. If you need one lit, ask Aang."

"Why me?" Aang protested.

"Because I'm your firebending teacher and I say so," Zuko answered solemnly.

"Meaning you're too lazy," Aang grumbled teasingly, and Zuko snorted at him, otherwise ignoring the comment.

"Also, in the courtyard behind the kitchen there is a fresh water well," he continued instead. "Past that, there are two rooms with open air baths. The one on the right is traditionally the girls, and the left is the boys. I suspect, however, that the water will need to be changed if we actually want to use them. You've all found the kitchen already, and the sitting room. The... library might have been burned," he added, a bit too quickly, "but hopefully we can salvage some of it. Sokka, want to tackle that with me tomorrow?"

The boy's eyes lit up at the thought of all that secret Fire Nation knowledge just waiting to be rescued. Plus, scavenging was a site better than cleaning, or refilling baths. "Yeah, I think I could manage that," he agreed.

"Then Aang and I will change the baths tomorrow," Katara offered, turning to the shorter boy. "It'll be a good excuse to get in some waterbending practice. All you do now is firebending and earthbending."

"That's because they need the most work," Aang admitted. "But yeah, okay. I do miss our sessions." Katara smiled at him, and felt him smile back, realizing, suddenly, she had missed them too.

"I guess I'll be in charge of meals then," Suki offered helpfully. "Might need to see if there are any surviving Fire Nation cookbooks though," she added.

No one expected an offer from Toph, and she didn't give one. But that was okay, Katara figured. Once everyone was working, she'd probably find something helpful to do, and if she didn't, well, that was Toph. At some point, Katara noticed, she'd given up on the matter. The girl would be who she was, and that all there was too it.

"Let's get cleaning then," Katara suggested. "I could use a good sleep."

Suddenly a huge cloud of dust wafted out of Toph's room. As the nearest members of the group coughed in the upheaval, the rest watched as the blind earthbender dusted off her hands into the hallway with a wicked little grin. "Done," she reported as the last of it settled into a huge pile of dirt in the hall way.

"Careful," Suki grinned at Katara. "Your eyes might pop out of your head."

With an effort, Katara controlled her expression.

"Hey!" Aang exclaimed, apparently under no such constraints. "Cool!" Moments later the Avatar was earthbending his own bedroom clean.

"Wait, no! Toph!" Katara shouted, suddenly coming to her senses. "Aang! Not _into _the hallway! Put the dirt outside - use the balconies!"

"Toph, Toph!" Sokka banged on the girl's door. "Come on, do mine! Please? Toph!"

Smiling at the earthbender's surprising method of helping, Katara rushed in to help direct the mayhem. She had never thought of using bending to clean! How silly. She dried clothes with it, had served soup with it, and so much more - why not cleaning too?

Soon enough, though, they had a system going. Toph or Aang would earthbend all the dirt out of the room, and Aang would blow fresh air through afterward to help with the dust. Then Suki and Sokka would strip the bed and hold out the blankets while Katara ran water through them as thoroughly as possible, cleaning them, and finally drawing the water back out. Finally, Aang would blow the blankets dry so they could be returned to the bed, and whoever slept there could go out on the balcony and shake out their own pillows.

Momo chattered at them after the first room, and showed them that the canopies above the bed were also dusty by upending one onto the floor so Aang could bend it outside quickly. Tipping the dusty fabric into Toph's or Aangs earthbending piles quickly became the screeching lemur's job.

Cleaning suddenly became efficient and fast, and even Zuko got in on it. Apparently cleaning using bending was even more foreign to him than Katara, but eventually he suggested using Fire Breaths before blow drying the blankets so that they stayed warm. Aang declared it was like freezing breath to make ice, and took to it quickly, blowing steaming air everywhere, while Toph made up new insulting nicknames for him.

Zuko also took it on himself to give the rooms a once over after the bending storm blew through them, and Katara was shocked to find he was actually cleaning stuff they'd missed, and doing a good job. As he bent over a bookshelf, Katara was struck suddenly with the memory of him in earthbending clothes and a tea apron, smiling and serving customers. For the first time she could almost believe that the boy back then and prince before her now were the same person.

All in all it was a successful night. The rooms were cleaned (mostly) and everyone had a beautiful place to stay. Katara was starting to feel they might be safe here, despite her reasonable doubts. Even more importantly, she felt like they were a whole group, family like, for the first time in a long while.

* * *

"Tea?"

Suki and Katara glanced up as Zuko called politely from the door. Katara smiled and snuggled deeper into her warm bed, Suki sprawling at her feet with a book. "Please," she called, allowing Zuko into the room.

He offered both girls a steaming cup - which was actually very good and exactly what Katara needed. She relaxed even more as she sipped it, and realized she was grateful to the prince at the same moment she noticed he'd just served her. As he set the tray down and pulled up a chair for himself she was forcefully reminded of Zuko the tea server again, and wondered dimly if that topic was worth wasting a question on.

Suki shifted against her feet as Zuko settled into his chair, and it occured to Katara that she was tensing because he'd stayed to drink with them. As the prince blew into his teacup, Katara noticed that he was well aware of Suki's eyes on him, and seemed accustomed to her discomfort. _He doesn't know what to do about it,_ she understood suddenly. _So he just grins and bares it, stupid boy. Why did I tell him about how sometimes friends are better made when you _aren't _being strong for if he's not going to use it?_

She sighed. _Better teach him how then..._

Placing her cup on the side table she bent some water from the skin at the foot of her bed. "Ready for a healing session then, Zuko?" she asked pointedly, so that Suki would understand he hadn't just invited himself in - though it was his house.

"Ah, thanks," he said gruffly, and thrust his arm out to her stiffly again.

Katara sighed as she began the intricate repair work and she wondered briefly what her question tonight should be. It should benefit Suki too, she supposed, if she wanted the girl to warm to Zuko at all. After all, both of them were in the same boat. It was hard to trust someone they didn't know. If they wanted to fix that, the answer was easy. Ask questions. Katara had a million.

Unfortunately, it was hard to sift through them all for something valuable to both her and Suki and not too delicate to ask in front of the Kyoshi Warrior, while maintaining her complicated rehabilitating healing. Of course, she didn't know what the best question was, but Zuko was the one with all the answers anyway. Maybe if she just gave him a prompt, steered in him the right direction, he'd decide for himself what was relevant for tonight.

"I'm sorry if saying the house was so big seemed rude," Katara stated simply, having felt the need to apologize for any awkwardness she had caused the prince since much earlier that night. "I grew up in such an incredibly different environment, it's hard to fathom something like the Fire Nation palace, even after being in Ba Sing Se. Plus, I guess cleaning casts a new perspective on everything."

"Yeah," Zuko agreed, still a bit roughly. "There did seem to be a lot to clean."

Katara let her eyes bore into him, as if willing him to continue. He glanced at her awkwardly, and, after a moment, struggled onward.

"To me, the house always seemed small though," he offered, as if to placate her. "After the constant hubbub of the palace, coming out here was isolated. Just the family, an occasional guest, and our few servants... Having private beach meant we could act a bit more as a family and less like royalty..."

Katara smiled, pleased at this, but kept silent, wondering what else he'd provide. His eyes darted around once in her quiet, and he shrugged, obviously knowing he was _supposed _to talk, but confused because she hadn't asked a question.

"Ah... My room seems a lot smaller than I remember," he commented. But then the corners of his mouth turned up slightly in what would have been a huge grin from Sokka or Aang. "Or maybe I'm just bigger now."

Katara smiled - _was that a joke?_ - and Suki snorted happily. "I know the feeling." Katara's patient gaze turned to her, and Suki flushed as she now realized _she _was now expected to elaborate. "I, ah... left my home when I went off to train as a Kyoshi Warrior. I still saw my family, you know, nothing too serious. But when I went back home once, after having lived with the Warriors for a few years, I lay in my bed. I guess I was feeling nostalgic a bit. Anyway, I found out real quick I was too big for it." Katara chuckled. "Yup," Suki added. "I'd grown right out of it; too tall. My legs stuck off the bottom and my head banged the wall."

Allowing herself a hearty laugh, Katara was pleased with the results, as Suki joined in quickly, and she even heard a deep chuckle from Zuko. "I never had that particular problem," the prince admitted. "Normally my bed at home was so large I had to worry more about smothering in all the blankets than falling out." He frowned, letting the full force of it show on his face. "Actually, I think Azula tried to do that to me a few times as a kid..."

"What, smother you?" Katara asked, and Zuko nodded crisply.

"One of her better plans too," he added, and his eyes sparked so she was unsure if he was joking or being honest. "Would have been real easy to make it look like an accident that way. I used to roll about in my sleep quite a lot back then. Of course, being at sea for over a year knocked that habit real quick..."

Suki glanced at Katara, obviously similarly confused as to whether Zuki had been joking or not. He spoke in such a monotone voice it was hard to decide. Only Toph seemed to be able to tell if he was really joking, and she wasn't here. Should they be concerned? Suki seemed to be thinking along the same lines. "Why would your sister want to strangle you in your bed?" she asked when Katara resolutely didn't.

"Oh, we were always feuding like that," Zuko dismissed her worries with a wave of his hand. "She used to say if I was out of the way, she'd get the crown, and she'd spend days and days plotting new ways to kill me. Worst I ever got was a scar though."

Zuko looked around at the two completely pale girls. "What?" he asked, confused by their looks.

Suddenly, their unspoken fear hit him. "Oh, no! Not... that," he said quickly. "Here." He rolled up his pants and gestured at a scar that ran across his knee and down his shin a ways. "She pushed me off a bridge and meant for me to land in the pond, probably hoping I'd drown, but she missed, or maybe I did, and I smacked my knee on a rock and cut it real back. It bruised and got swollen to nearly twice it's normal size, plus it hurt real bad. I think I scared her, bleeding like that, because Mai went running off to find my mom, and Azula and Ty Lee actually climbed off the bridge after me. I think they were trying to comfort me, but Ty Lee just started bawling and wouldn't stop, and Azula kept insulting me and called me a cry-baby and clumsy for falling in the first place."

"But she pushed you," Suki pointed out.

"I guess," Zuko shrugged, obviously not on the same wavelength. "That's not really the point though, is it?" The two girls didn't understand and shared a glance. He noticed and tried to explain better. "Azula was... well, she always wanted to be me. Not me, Zuko. Me, the heir. She wanted to be the oldest, or a boy, or whatever so that she could be my father's successor. She thought she deserved it, and worked hard to prove that, to earn it. To do that, I needed to be out of the way." He paused for a second before continuing.

"You know. I think she wanted me to be stronger than her, since she couldn't make me go away. At least if she lost to me fair and square, it wouldn't seem like pure prejudice or cruel fate that I would one day inherit all she was denied by gender and birthright. That's why she always tried to knock me off, I bet..." He paused again, sad as if he considering all this for the first time from Azula's standpoint. "I don't blame her though," he decided. "She was twice the fighter I ever was back then."

"Was she always... as resolved as she is now?" Katara asked tentatively. "As cold and calculating as she seems?"

"Yeah." Zuko seemed tired of talking already.

_So much for my questions, _Katara sighed.

"I can't believe all this stuff is hers," Suki spoke up, her voice a bit strangled. "She doesn't seem like the kind of girl who wants all of this."

Zuko glanced around once as well. "Wanted or not, it's hers. She went through a real misfit stage - kind of like Toph. She refused to wear nice clothes, only sparring armor or boy clothes, and even tried to cut off most of her hair. But she grew out of it."

"Really?" Katara asked, her tone disbelieving. "She doesn't seem like she's grown out of that at all."

"No, she has," Zuko denied. "She discovered that nice clothes and a good appearance can be just as useful as a sword or a crown in many cases. She's shrewd, and more so the older she got. I think she out grew the boyish mentality when she grew into..." Zuko flushed slightly, "...you know... herself."

"Ah," Suki surmised. "When she sprouted some curves."

Zuko winced at the analogy used on his sister. It was an unnerving thought to actually think of Azula that way but he nodded.

"Think Toph will grow out of it?" Katara wondered.

Zuko snorted into his tea cup, and Suki laughed. "I don't know, Katara. I see lots of girls come through Kyoshi training who want to prove they're as tough as the boys, and mosty all of them outgrow it eventually, but I've never met anyone exactly like Toph..."

"Neither have I." Katara glanced at Zuko, a bit of heat in the look. "What?" he asked, the corners of his lips sinking in what she now knew was confusion.

"Nothing." Actually, she wasn't sure herself what the glare was for. Why would she protect Toph when she agreed with their comments? Oh well. "You're pretty much done for the night. Come back tomorrow?"

"I will," Zuko agreed, flexing his fingers and rotating his wrist experimentally. "It's improving. Thank you." It was stated with the casualness of a soldier's report, but there was certain something more behind the thank you, as small as his smile, but Katara could pick it out now.

"I'll take the tea back down," she offered, grabbing up the tray and moving towards the door just as Zuko rose to leave. He caught her eye for a second and nodded, holding the door for her and closing it behind her. "Walk down to the kitchen with me?" she asked, and he nodded again, as if he'd expected it.

He rubbed his head as they started down the stairs. As soon as they were out of earshot of the bedrooms, Katara prepared to phrase her question. Surprisingly, Zuko beat her to the punch. "The worst thing she ever did to me was probably the time she locked me in a well and left me there all night," he said quickly, looking up at the ceiling the whole time. "Mom was livid when the guards found me the next day." His eyes looked back at her shocked expression before going right back to the spot on the roof he was studying. "The time she was most endearing to me, as a little sister, was when the General's son, a young soldier boy she had _actually _shown some interest in, died in the war. She was normal at the ceremony, but she was crying really bad that night. I didn't know what to say, and I think she resented me even coming to see her then, but... Their division was slaughtered. They were inexperienced, but they were deployed anyway. Cannon fodder." His eyes blazed angrily as he said it, but they died immediately, faster than Katara had ever seen anger leave him. "That's war, though, right? The powerful live on and the weak ones pay their price?"

Katara shivered. He sounded like Jet. The resentment in his voice was palpable, and Katara was sure there was something more to it than she was quite catching.

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, hoping to find out the reason behind his tone, and his eyes.

He finally met her gaze, drawing his eyes from the roof. "It was going to be your question, right?"

_Was it horrible living with Azula, or was she ever just a normal little sister?_ She hadn't even spoken it, and he knew it was coming. She shivered. _Can he read my expressions like I'm learning to read his?_

Zuko smiled suddenly, more than just a twitch of his lips, but an actual smile, like he had with Toph the night before. "Don't worry about it. You can ask; I said you could. She wasn't a monster, though I know she thought she was. Granted," he added, almost fondly, "she was a complete brat, and mostly heartless, but she was as driven as I was, maybe more so. She was cold, and often said mean things to me. To Mom she was inconsiderate, and wicked in her own twisted way. But sometimes, a very few times... she was my little sister." He glanced up the stairs, towards their rooms. "It seems she's outgrown that now too..."

"Outgrown... what?"

"...Me."

Zuko looked back at her, the golden eyes piercing again. "When we were younger, I could still see her as my sister sometimes. Every once in a while, she would break down, and need me, or Mom. The older she got, the less often it happened. After the night of the funeral, when I didn't know how to help her... I never saw her lose it again. She's been cold, uncaring, and dismissive ever since. She's done what Mother always feared she would. Lost her humanity."

_Is that what happened to your father too?_

Katara bit her lip. Her questions for the night were expired, even if she hadn't spoken them out loud. She set down the tea tray and turned back up the stairs, wondering what other memories lay in this house. _Azula as a person, as a sister, as a daughter. She lived here as a child..._

"Are you coming?" she asked when Zuko didn't follow.

She was only a few feet up, but she may as well have been a mile.

"...Eventually."

His eyes seemed far away, his voice smaller than normal, and she sighed. _Just when I thought I was starting to understand him..._

The night was shaping up to be a long one.


	39. Chapter 39:What If

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: yey, ember island players! my favorite episode EVAR! if you haven't watched this i highly recommend you do. they go to a play in this episode, which is uproariously hilarious, and which, sadly, we will not be repeating word for word in this story. i am going to assume most people have watched it. if you haven't, you'll still manage. i fill in blanks, but you might be left out of a joke or two._

_yeah, so we took a few days longer than normal. this chapter is like, twice as long as when we were updating about once a week, so if it took us like a week and a half, you can be happy N E ways, because you love us! (or you will, by the end of this chappie XDDD)  
_

**Trombe: Whew! Finally. But man do we still have a long ways to go. we were suppose to get the ball rolling about a month or two ago but then writing this kind of stuff...it takes time. Skill...and dedication. Did I mention time? Anyway, we can't rush this. It's suppose to be our Magnum Opus. So without further ado on with the story! Oh and some of you have been complaining about the lack of amusement lately in our Author's note...well..what are we, your trained monkeys?!  


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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 39: What If  


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Katara realized she was staring.

Not that her companion would care - or notice, since Toph was blind, though oddly perceptive for one - but still, she wouldn't want to be caught by anyone else. Catching herself was embarrassing enough.

But it wasn't as if anyone could actually blame her. As a fellow bender herself, watching the two firebenders at full motion was entrancing. Aang and Zuko handled fire with a daringly controlled mastery, with just this side of wild, and completely enthralling. It certainly had nothing to do with watching the way their muscles moved or the sweat rolled down their bare chests-

Katara caught herself again, the thought embarrassed her like nothing before. _I didn't just think that, did I?! I need to stop doing that! _She was a girl, wasn't she? It was only natural to be attracted to the opposite sex. Yes... that's right. Natural.

She spoke out loud to enforce a new thought pattern over her mind. "Doesn't it seem kind of weird that we're hiding from the Fire Lord in his own house?" she asked Toph absently, watching the two boys bow to each other as they ended their session.

Zuko stretched, and cracked his knuckles over his head. try as she might Katara couldn't help but watched the scars on his back, still just as visible as the day he had received them from the Boiling Rock. Aang rolled a shoulder and raised an eyebrow at Katara. She smiled that the boy's thoughtfulness. He had been listening to her even when ending his lesson with his firebending Sifu, even though it probably was not the respectful thing to do. "Shouldn't you have brought up an issue like that _before _we cleaned everything?" he teased.

"I'm not saying it's wrong to stay," Katara amended, having just spoken as a means to distraction. "Just that it's sort of... odd."

"Peaceful, though," Toph added, kicking her legs where she lay on her back beside Katara. The blind earthbender had been spending most of her time relaxing as much as the day allowed it. "Though I kind of get what you mean. Sometimes, especially on wooden areas where I can't really see that well, I get this... eerie feeling, like the Fire Lord might just like... I don't know, pop out of a closet or something and strangle me."

Aang barked a short, rather uncomfortable laugh. "No, that's sounds more like something Azula would do. Fire Lord Ozai would be more likely to just burn you to a cinder, right Zuko?"

The young Avatar probably meant it to sound off like a casual joke but the fire prince clearly was not buying it.

Zuko sighed as he rubbed sweat from his skin with a short towel about his neck and dropped into a relaxed position on some steps. "No," he snorted at his younger companions. "You're both being ridiculous. I told you, my father hasn't come here since our family was _actually _happy, and that was a long time ago." He glanced away, since his gaze had grown darker, and Katara surprised herself by realizing she knew he was _trying _to be casual. He was getting easier and easier to understand - she just had to look a little harder. Though there was still so much mystery about him...

"It's the last place anyone would think to look for us." He stated nonchalantly while wiping the few beads of sweat that perspired down his forehead.

"Yeah, I know," Aang waved him off. "There's probably no reason why he should be here," He shivered slightly. "But it's still... creepy sometimes. I don't know, just a feeling I get too."

"Maybe that's 'cause you're in Ozai's room?" Toph suggested.

"I'm _WHAT?"_ Aang demanded, straightening suddenly.

Zuko glared at her. "You weren't supposed to say that." If his tone was meant to be scolding Toph didn't care. She only shrugged.

Katara huffed. "Well, look, I've been waiting out here all morning for you two to finish your workout. If Toph and Aang want to put off the next session to chat, fine, but we were supposed to get your healing done _last night, _Zuko, so come over here and let me start if you're done firebending and looking... sweaty." The waterbender girl hesitated for a moment, she was about to say something else entirely that would have brought about embarrassment to no end, but had just managed to catch herself.

The prince did not seem to noticed as he raised an eyebrow at her irked tone, but it was playful, on both their parts. What could have been an exchange of words that at one time would have led to a heated argument did not happen this time. Somehow, they seemed above that now . Interaction, this new life with each other, it had become normal, easy even. Katara knew she would miss it if Zuko's reassuring presence wasn't there. She had come to rely on him, as a friend and a central part of their group and now as... well...

With no hesitation the worn prince pushed off his fountain stairs and strode over to her, dropping at her feet and placing his hand in her lap wordlessly, as had become their tradition during his healing sessions.

"Oooh, goodie," Toph clapped her hands childishly. "That means we get a story, right Hot-Head? Or has Suger-Queen already asked her question?"

"Wait a second!" Aang interrupted. "Will someone please tell me what Toph meant by saying I'm in Ozai's room?"

"No, Twinkle-Toes," Toph protested, punching him when he stomped over to them. "You have to do it like this." She cleared her throat obviously. "Zuko, what was it like growing up with Ozai as a dad and visiting this place?" She smiled at Aang. "See? That's a much more interesting question! We're asking that one, right Katara?"

Katara smirked at Zuko. It was obvious he had told the earthbender Aang was in his father's room specifically because he wanted the issue brought up. It was only a matter of time before the girl let something that juicy slip. Plus, the look on the prince's face showed things were going according to some secret agenda. She rolled her eyes dramatically, as if put out, and gave in. "All right, fine," she surrendered in her most patronizing tone. "But this is the last of my questions you steal, Toph." She shook an admonishing finger at the girl before setting to work.

Aang was still watching Zuko with little patience not fitting for a benevolent Avatar. "Well?" he demanded, foot tapping.

"She's right," Zuko admitted in a falsely grudging tone. "Sokka's in the room that's normally my uncle's when he visited, and Toph's in what used to be my cousin, Liu Ten's. Katara and Suki are in Azula's. I'm in my own. Which leaves you in the Fire Lord's room - if the fact that it was connected to my mother's didn't give it away."

"Why would you put me in there?" Aang accused, a bit of anger seeping into his tone.

"Why do you think?" the prince asked, his tone completely dry. "As to what growing up with him as a father was like, perhaps listening might enlighten you, oh all-knowing-Avatar."

Aang took a deep breath, as if calming himself, and finally nodded. "All right, fine." He sat down, crossing his legs beneath him, and his arms across his chest, and looked up at Zuko, his face a schooled patience that Katara knew meant he was willing, but unhappy. "I'll listen."

Zuko didn't seem to have an opinion one way or the other on Aang's response, moving on blandly, which Katara knew meant he had just won something and was trying not to let Aang know he had won. She wondered what the two were playing at. "Father... I mean the Fire Lord has always been more like Azula," he started. "Or, rather, she's most like him. They're devoid of many emotions, or at least so well schooled in controlling them that it's rare for me to see them express themselves. Ambitious. If anything, I can say about my family it is ambitious. And I know for a fact Fire Lord Ozai is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve his goals. It doesn't matter who gets hurt in the process."

"As for what growing up with him was like... I suppose, in retrospect, it was... disappointing. I was constantly being pushed, Azula too. We were compared to each other, to Liu Ten - and to anyone else our age. We are of the royal bloodline, we were expected to do better. We were given everything we wanted, but there was no reward for success, really. Only penalty for failure. At least, in Dad's eyes. In them, I think I was always a failure."

Zuko sighed, and Katara found she was stroking his hand a bit more than strictly necessary for healing. "Yeah, but, you did _some _normal family stuff," Aang argued. "Why else would you have a beach house?"

"Just because we came here doesn't mean it was_ normal_." Zuko rubbed his head with his free hand. "Azula pushed me off that balcony once," he said, gesturing to the one outside his own window. "And the one time Dad came down to the beach to play with us, I remember he kicked over my sand replica of the Fire Nation Palace. He said I was wasting time playing with dirt when I should be training, like my sister. The only times he really softened were for my mom, and after she was gone, it was all stony faced disappointment, on both our ends."

"Don't worry, hot-man," Toph grinned. "You're not the only one who's got 'daddy-issues' here."

"It's more than just that though," Zuko tried to explain. "With him, it was always the war. Always. Every day. I was being trained from the start how to be a better warrior, a better fighter, a better strategist, a better... successor." The dark haired youth sighed at the last part. "To father, If family was ever important it was only to continue on his legacy. Dad was out to get Uncle every bit as much as Azula was out to get me. In fact, I think he encouraged her, liked her better because they're alike, both of them. I guess it was a triumph for them both when he finally convinced Grandfather to pass on the title to him over Uncle. "

"I always did wonder about that," Aang said suddenly. "I mean, isn't Iroh older than your dad? Why isn't he the Fire Lord? I think my job would be a lot easier if he was."

Toph snorted. Katara glared at her complete lack of manners. "What?" she protested, feeling the other girl's eyes. "I'm agreeing!"

"Let's just say," Zuko cut in, "Fire Lord Ozai paid a very hefty price for usurping the throne. And you know what the worst part is?" His eyes seemed far away. "...I don't think he regretted it one_ bit_." Zuko spat the last part.

Katara felt as if she was finally getting to a real issue, a true secret, when Sokka's voice cut suddenly across the courtyard. "Hey! You guys are _not _going to believe this!" Zuko jumped slightly, having apparently not heard Sokka approach. Katara might not have noticed if she hadn't been holding his hand, but when he discretely pulled it out of her lap, she let it go reluctantly. She was _basically _done healing it, but she was sure she could have found some more work to do today if she'd just kept inspecting it. Zuko, however, stood and went back to the fountain with Aang as Sokka bounced happily between the two parties, obviously extremely excited about his news. "There's a play about us!"

Obviously feeling the need to explain her boyfriend (who she had been spending the morning with) Suki elaborated. "We were just in town and we kept seeing people waring waterbending clothes, and bald caps with arrows and such. We even saw one or two in Kyoshi garbs. It was really crazy, I'll tell you. I think they were pretending to be us."

"What?" Aang asked, his natural curiosity perking. "Now why would they do that?

" Now that," Sokka said dramatically, "is the question."

Suki nodded enthusiastically. "We asked someone, and they showed us... this." She took out a rolled up piece of parchment.

"Ta-Dah!" Sokka waved the poster impressively for them all to gape at.

"What?" Katara asked, confused and somewhat skeptic. The picture on the poster certainly did _look _like them... but..."How is that possible?"

But Sokka just flipped the poster back around to himself to read aloud as the others gathered around him. "Listen to this: The Boy in the Iceberg is a new production from acclaimed playwright Pu Wan Tin, who scoured the globe gathering information on the Avatar, from the icy South Pole to the heart of Ba Sing Se. His sources include singing nomads-"

"That's Chey!" Aang perked.

"-pirates-"

Zuko clicked his tongue and shook his head, obviously remembering an experience he desperately wanted to forget.

"-prisoners of war-"

Katara winced slightly. She hoped they didn't know about the Boiling Rock!

"-and a surprisingly knowledgeable merchant of cabbage..." Sokka stroked his chin as if was trying to remember something.

"Brought to you by the critically acclaimed Ember Island Players," Suki finished for him.

Zuko finally responded, with a groan. "Ergh!" He slouched unhappily in what was a huge display of emotion for the stoic boy. When everyone glanced at him, his expression drooped even further. "My mother used to take us to see them," he explained. "They butchered Love Amongst the Dragons every year."

"So... Let's go!" Sokka chirped up merrily, as if striving (almost effortlessly) to counter Zuko's dismissal attitude.

"Sokka," Katara pointed out obviously, "do you really think it's a good idea to go to a play about ourselves?"

"Come on!" he whined immediately, unrolling the scroll again. "A day at the theater? This is the kind of wacky, time wasting nonsense I've been missing!" He grinned in his endearingly stupid manner.

"Besides," Suki supported him, "everyone there's trying to dress up _like _us, so it'll be more 'hiding in plain sight'. That is why we're here _at _Ember Island in the first place, right?"

And so that was how Katara found herself being dragged to the stupid play, dressed in some of Azula's nicer clothing, with Suki still struggling to get Toph's on right. Aang had found himself a hat she thought rather silly somewhere to hide his arrow, and had managed to find a Fire Nation top in Zuko's old clothes that actually fit him without screaming 'look at me, I just escaped from school'. Sokka's topknot seemed neater than normal, and he had found a nice clip somewhere in his room for it. He also had a deep red cloak over his arm, and Katara was highly suspicious that he only brought it out in the oppressively warm island whether because he was hoping Suki would get cold in the skirt she had pulled from Azula's closet, and that he could lend it to her. Zuko was completely shrouded in a hooded cape, and she thought for a moment he had brushed his hair. Then Katara realized that it was more likely an attempt to hide his scar. He slouched grumpily along behind them, hiding deep in his cowl, and trying to keep his head down while Aang, Sokka, Toph and Suki chatted excitedly. Katara decided to drop back and talk to him, since she wasn't - as of yet - sharing the others' enthusiasm for the play.

"So, how's the hand?" she asked tentatively.

"Fine."

She blew a hair out of her face. "Expressive as always, I see."

His lips quirked slightly beneath his hood, but then he pulled it further around him as he bumped someone in the crowd. "Okay, it's better. Thank you. I'm so used to some of my older burns, that having this much movement in my hand again seems a bit strange, actually. I had to work to balance it out evenly again in morning practice today."

"Well, I'm glad you don't let it get you down."

He shrugged, his eyes glowing beneath the hood again. "Fire's a dangerous element. Everyone who plays with it gets burned eventually. We just eventually learn to push through the pain. We don't quit."

She felt a small shiver run down her spine at his look, and suddenly felt a bit exposed in her small top, goose-bumps ghosting over her bare belly. She knew he meant that in more ways than one. She had certainly burned him, and it was a small reminder he hadn't given up on her yet.

Wondering if she had read that right, or if she was worrying too much, Katara followed the rest as they found seats.

As they filed in, there was a small scramble for seats as Toph complained about how far away they were. Katara was answering her as she noticed the battle. Aang had tried to sit next to her, and Zuko had muscled him out, even when the boy protested.

Oh yes, the message was clear. This was an evening out, and burned or not, Zuko was going for it.

* * *

If the first intermission had been awkward, it was nothing compared to the second.

And the first had been very..._awkward. _

Aang spent the whole time complaining about being played by a woman, Zuko was just as grumpy about watching his arrogant past persona, and even Sokka whined about his actor's supposedly lacking certain flair and...abilities. Katara had tried to explain that they weren't accurate portrayals, but everyone stared at her like she had gone mad. Apparently all her so-called 'friends' thought she was some kind of preachy cry-baby who couldn't resist giving over-emotional speeches about hope all the time!

But after the second part of the play, things had definitely taken a turn for an extremely awkward worse for Katara. Apparently whoever wrote the play was under the mistaken impression that she and Zuko had shared some kind of 'fling' while imprisoned in the crystal caverns of Ba Sing Se. Which was utterly ridiculous! (Though somewhat romantic in the play...) Once intermission started, Suki and Sokka had sneaked off somewhere, and Aang had stomped off in a fit of rage, so she'd left Zuko behind as she went after him.

Which all somehow lead to this extremely awkward moment she was having right now. Did she mention it was awkward? Well, yes, because it most definitely was!

"I hate this play!" Aang huffed, throwing his hat to ground.

Katara sighed, knowing exactly what the boy's problem was.

Zuko. Well, the Zuko in the play. While true there had been nothing going on between her and the brooding fire prince in Ba Sing Se, Katara could not fully say she did not feel something for the prince now. After all their trials and tribulations, she had bonded with Zuko like never before and found a different light in the young firebender. Something she had never seen in him before. Her slight admiration for him was probably not a secret anymore. Aang was not stupid. He was probably already picking up certain signs. And how did Katara felt?...then again...ever since that night, that full moon night where Zuko had...kissed her...it already had started, had'nt it? Zuko had already made it clear how he felt. The only thing stopping it from happening was her. Or mainly, her relationship with Aang, she realized, because there was a part of her, a part she was desperately trying to refuse, that was starting to pay attention to Zuko a bit more than she should.

But that didn't matter, because there was still...Aang.

Of course, until this gawky moment, there hadn't really been anything in a very long time. And certainly nothing like the one kiss she had shared with Zuko-

She cut off the thought. She needed to deal with Aang right now. That first; the rest could come after.

"I know it's upsetting," she started, "but it sounds like you're overreacting."

"Overreacting!?" he repeated. "If I hadn't blocked my chakra, I'd probably be in the Avatar state right now!" He slumped over the railing. "Look, I'm sorry. I know I don't normally shout, but... I'm not stupid. It's not just the play. I've been feeling... tension between us for a while now."

"Us?" Katara questioned.

"Yeah, us," Aang answered simply, waving his hands between the two of them. "Whatever 'us' is."

"I've been wondering about that too," Katara admitted. "What exactly 'we' are."

"And... there's more to it," Aang continued. "I don't know why I didn't see it before!"

Katara wasn't sure she liked where this was going. "See what?" she asked cautiously. "What's making this so hard for you?"

"Katara..." He turned away from the view to face inward, shifting nervously against the rail. "...Did you really mean what you said in there?" he asked finally.

"In where?" she wondered, not following. "What are you talking about?"

"On stage!" Aang clarified. "When you said I was just like... brother... to you." The word 'brother' had more dislike on it than Katara thought it deserved. "And that you didn't have feelings for me."

_Oh, well that would explain it. _She shook her head. "I didn't say that!" she protested, a big frustrated that everyone was taking this play so literally. "An actor said that."

"But it's true, isn't it?"

Aang turned away from her as he spoke, and something in Katara was glad he did. She wondered if she'd be able to meet his gaze still. She loved Aang, she did. But while they had been entertaining the idea of it being something more intimate, they weren't going anywhere! Was what they had really so different from the love she shared with Sokka? Whatever it was, it certainly wasn't something like Zuko's kiss... _Don't think about that now!_

"We kissed at the invasion," Aang surmised her thoughts, "and... I thought we were gonna be together. But we're not."

"I thought we were going to be too," Katara supplied easily, since she really had.

"So why aren't we?"

"That's what I want to know." She leaned on the railing. "It's not like I didn't want to. I _do _want to. But we're not... you know... doing anything." Aang stiffened. "And now I'm confused."

As she admitted the last Aang turned to her. "Confused? Katara, what is there to be confused about? You were always the person I was supposed to be with, from the very first day I woke up and saw your face! What else is there?"

_There's Zuko,_ a voice whispered, and she firmly stamped on it. It didn't help that watching Jet's death again made her think of what she could have had with him too, if only she had acted sooner. She was tired of not acting until it was too late, but now that Aang finally wanted to, after she had waited all this time... Katara always did the thing she was supposed to do, so she really didn't know the answer to his question. What else was there? Was that what was in their way? They didn't know what else there was?

"Aang," she finally whispered, searching for words, "I don't know..."

"Why don't you know?" He seemed frustrated, as if it were a simple question, when really it seemed so much more complicated than he realized.

"Because we're in the middle of a war, and we have other things to worry about."

"Maybe I'm tired of being so self-sacrificing then." His voice sounded tired now, much older than he should be. "If I can't even have you, what was the point? We're losing this war, and now maybe I'm losing you too."

"You're not losing me...I just... Maybe now isn't the right time." the flowing night breeze made Katara's slight whisper sound a bit more cold. Katara never knew that the air could get so cold on a summer night like this.

"Well, when is the right time?"

"Aang, I'm sorry. But..." She tugged her hair, She could tell this was hurting him, but it was hurting her too. She wasn't trying to break this off - it was dying all on it's own, and had been for some time. It was just that neither of them knew what to do, and Aang forcing it wasn't helping any more than both of them ignoring it. It was all too confusing! That was exactly it. "Right now I'm just a little...confused."

She closed her eyes. It sucked, but at least she'd been honest, right? Being honest with Aang was always for the best.

Suddenly small lips pressed against her own and her eyes flew open. For the second time she was being kissed before she knew what was happening. No, third. _Can't someone just kiss me for once when I'm ready for it? _she thought angrily.

And then an even worse thought hit her. She was thinking like this while he was kissing her. She wasn't feeling anything like she was supposed to. There was no heady elation running through her, the way she had been caught up in the moment the first time he'd kissed her, or the way she seemed to be almost floating when Zuko had swept her up. Somehow, the magic was gone.

He was like a brother.

She stepped back with a small gasp, trying to keep her hand from flying to her mouth. She knew her eyes were probably wider than she meant them to be, but she couldn't help it. Words fell from her mouth. "I just said I was confused!"

Aang blinked at her, and he seemed young again. _Can't he make up his mind! _She was already so confused, couldn't she at least like someone normal? _If I even still like him..._

She still did feel the pull, though, the strange desire she had since the moment she first met him. It was like fate, swirling around her, drawing them together, promising them they would need each other forever. But suddenly, for the first time, she really found herself wondering 'what else'.

"I'm... I'm going inside," she managed before running off.

_I care about him, _she told herself, _I really do. But... I don't know if I can do this with him anymore! I need something, something more... real! We can't beat Ozai like this. We could be dead tomorrow, or I could lose him forever, and we're not even making progress. Plus, now I'm feeling guilty for worrying about stupid things like this when people's lives are at stake! But I can't keep pretending to be happy with not doing anything, and then when he just kissed me right now..._

Nothing. There had been nothing.

_Where did it go?_

But there was no answer.

Trying to control her breathing, Katara returned to her seat, hoping she didn't look flustered. If Toph noticed an irregular heart beat, she didn't say anything, and Sokka and Suki were behind her. Zuko glanced at her as she slid past him, but his face was dark. She was dimly aware of things happening, or the invasion starting and Aang retuning, of his visible flinching as the 'Katara' actress reassured him that they were great 'friends' and she loved him 'like a brother' where in reality their first kiss should have been. Katara felt strangely numb. It was as if nothing could reach her now. She just couldn't be bothered to care.

She heard Sokka muttering behind her as the play caught up to the present and didn't end. For a moment she was almost afraid it _was _going into the Boiling Rock, but when it skipped straight to a fiery red scene that was obviously supposed to be Sozin's Comet, Katara slipped back into uncaring. Sokka declared mysteriously behind her that this must now be "the future!" and she heard Suki knock him once in the head.

The actors' words were rushing past her now, she wasn't really listening. The Zuko on stage (who's scar was somehow on the wrong eye) told the female Aang to fly ahead and fight the Fire Lord, he would stay and finish his sister. The hard faced Azula actress and the overly skinny Zuko character began a face off she was only half watching.

And then suddenly like a thousand glasses, her world shattered.

The actress Azula flung her hand out, and fire leaped up from the bottom of the stage in waving curtains. The silhouette of Zuko was caught by one, and the man screamed as he was burned. The word "Honor!" drifted through the shocked audience, and the fake flames died, taking the Zuko on stage with them.

'The mocking figure of the actress Azula turned to the crowd and bowed.

Cheers broke out among every single Fire Nation person. The crowd seemed to have been waiting for this grand finale. The excitement at seeing their fallen prince finally destroyed rung powerfully in her ears.

Snapped out of her numbness by the hideous cheers of Zuko's beloved people, Katara's eyes spun to the prince, along with every member of their party, but only she was seated where she could see his face.

It had gone so pale that it made Toph's eyes look colorful, and his jaw was working as if trying to find something to say despite the fact that his brain had gone dead. It mouthed something soundless that looked like it might have been 'honor'. He stared at the scene with wide, shocked eyes, as if he somehow, if he disbelieved it enough, he could make the scene undo, and deny the fact that his sister had killed him.

He blinked a few times, and Katara felt her sympathy stirring again. She wasn't numb any more at all. This was the most expression she had ever seen on the prince's face besides anger, and it hurt to watch. She wanted to leap off the balcony and pound in the face of every cheering man, woman, and even some of the children. Or maybe just kick the Azula actress' behind. That might work.

For the first time, Katara felt she finally realized just how much Zuko had given up.

She prayed to any of the gods that would hear her plea, that this...whatever this was... was not to be their future.

The group watched grimly as "Aang" made her way out onto the stage to challenge "Fire Lord Ozai". There was no shock as they watched the small actress fall and die without so much as a fight. It was clear what was going to happen. Katara looked away, and Toph huffed angrily. As angry red flames spread across the stage, and Ozai claimed ownership of the world to the thundering of the crowd, Katara completely detached herself from the characters.

This whole play was stupid.

She just had to make sure that Zuko and Aang knew just how much she meant that.

* * *

"That... wasn't a good play."

The group stirred at the first words any of them had spoken since "Zuko" had died.

Surprisingly, it had been Zuko who had broken the silence, as they strolled across the sand. Katara was hovering around the prince as if afraid he might break, Toph could sense it. Aang was stomping along behind her. They were all being too dramatic. Zuko was much stronger than they gave him credit for.

"I'll say," Aang agreed unhappily.

"No kidding," Katara echoed. "Horrible." She seemed to be trying to put force in the words, as if convincing the other two boys to believe her.

"You said it," Toph added her own weight to the prissy girl's words.

"But the effects were decent." Sokka chimed in.

Toph could feel Katara's glare shoot through the air and over her shoulder to her brother.

"What?" he protested. "They were."

"It doesn't matter." The steel was back in Katara's voice, and Toph could feel her piecing together another sappy speech. After all the ones her play counterpart had given, the blind girl wasn't really in the mood. However, it was rather hard to derail the waterbender once she got started, so Toph decided to ignore it as best possible instead. "It was just some stupid play. We're _not _going to let it end like that. I don't care what anyone else thinks or says - we've come this far, and we're not stopping."

Katara's words were far stronger than any hopeful speech the actress had given, and Toph found herself strangely admiring the girl. She'd forgotten, momentarily, that Katara's speeches were actually good, and usually exactly what was needed. "Yeah," she agreed, force in her own voice as well. " That Performance was totally bogus. Who cares what those losers think anyway! If I let crowds like that get me down, I would never have won the Earth Rumble tournament."

"And you kicked ass at that, Toph!" She hoped she wasn't blushing at Sokka's compliment.

"Too true!" she declared instead.

For a moment, there was a serene quiet. If felt eerily, like the group was falling apart. Not away from each other,but each person felt strangely like a cliff face, tumbling away into the sea as they contemplated what they had just seen. A possible mock clairvoyance of what could be the future.

"Let's get dinner!"

Everyone turned at Suki's cheerful suggestion.

"Come on!" the Kyoshi warrior persisted, pouting. "Whenever we have a tough time with the other warriors, we get dinner out. No cooking, no washing up. Just good food, friends, and fun! Let's have fun!"

"What if someone recognizes us?" Katara considered.

"We'll just tell them we came from the play," Suki insisted. "Obviously, we're in costume. Or, you guys are. No one would recognize Toph or myself."

Toph opened her mouth and screamed soundlessly in Suki's direction.

"What are you doing!?" the girl demanded, flustered.

"Getting into character," Toph explained. "There, see? I got a pretty good look at you."

What seemed to be a tense silence erupted into full blown laughter with Zuko leading with his snicker. Sokka's was second in volume and sheer hilarity at the way he laughed.

"Toph," Sokka wheezed, "I thought you said the play was bogus. Why are you trying to see with your mouth? There's no such thing as a sonic blast, you know."

"I don't know," Toph shrugged. "I just really wanted to try it."

"So is there?" Aang asked playfully.

"Is there what?" Toph pushed.

"A sonic wave from your mouth that allows you to see stuff?"

"Oh. No." The blind girl huffed in disappointment.

The group laughed again.

"Now I'm definitely hungry," Sokka decided.

"So what else is new?" Katara mocked him.

"Even after all those snacks you wolfed down...can't say I'm surprised though. You are a growing boy." Suki smiled.

"Good thing I have a girlfriend who knows me then, huh?" Sokka gripped Suki's hand. "Let's get dinner. And screw everyone else! Let them look!" Aang made a startled sound as Sokka moved towards him.

A moment later someone shouted across the sand "Awesome Aang costume!" and Toph decided Sokka must have snatched his hat, since the warrior was yelling back a stupid thanks.

Zuko stopped walking for a second, and Toph tested the sand enough to sense him removing his cloak and pulling out a money bag from his belt. Everyone stared at him for a minute, before the voice across the beach started to shout again. Before they could even finish a word though, Zuko barked back "The scar is _not _on the wrong side!" and the group giggled again. He tossed Sokka the money bag. "You pick. I'll buy."

"Show off," Aang muttered, but Sokka was whooping over the prospect of dinner, and no one noticed.

So the group wound their way to dinner, chatting about random things, like how Toph had never known Sokka wound up in a dress when he first met Suki, or how Katara had wound up as the legendary Painted Lady, and what was up with Aang not telling them about the Blue Spirit (although his identity was still a secret, Zuko seemed adamant in letting the man keep his secret for some odd reason or another). As their meaty dishes were served by a waitress who seemed to think their costumes were great, but couldn't seem to figure out why a little girl would want to play Toph (Toph gave her a rant about how Toph was the coolest person in the whole world at that point), Zuko breached the subject of Jet. A quiet table told him the boy had died underneath Ba Sing Se, just like in the play, only with heaps more dignity, according to Aang. Zuko surprised them by revealing he had known Jet too, having spent time with him on the crossing from Ba Sing Se. He fell quiet again after that, and Toph could sense the silent depression sinking back over him.

But Katara was fretting over him enough, though it was hard to tell (Toph loved her amazing senses - eyes were so overrated) and there were others at the table with little problems, so she decided to focus on them instead. Besides, she'd already helped Zuko out once that night. Twice was pushing it.

After Katara had run off after Aang during intermission and Sokka and Suki had started a covert mission to sneak backstage and educate some of the actors, Toph had been left to deal with the angsty Zuko. She had finally decided to ask what was wrong. She was lazy, naturally, and as often as not asking Zuko was his problem was didn't help in the slightest. Like after he visited that Chan guy's house. It had just gotten her snapped at. But tonight, things had gone a bit better.

_"For me, this play takes all the mistakes I've had in my life and shoves them back in my face," Zuko had answered her. "My uncle... he's always been on my side - even when things were bad, he was there for me. He taught me so much. And how do I repay him? With a knife in his back! It was my greatest regret, and I may never get to redeem myself."_

_Toph had smiled then, considering herself lucky. Not because Zuko had a problem, or because she had to deal with it, but because it was the one problem she could actually help him with. "You have redeemed yourself to your uncle," she promised him, sinking down to sit beside him against the wall. "You don't realize it, but you already have."_

_"How do you know?" Zuko asked, wanting to believe her._

_"Because I once had a long conversation with the guy," she revealed. "And all he would talk about was you."_

_Zuko had pulled his hood off and leaned forward in excitement. "Really?" Even his tone betrayed his hope, a rarity._

_"Yeah," she confirmed. "And it was kind of annoying."_

_"Oh. Sorry." Now he was sounding like Zuko again; much better._

_"But it was also very sweet." She knew she might have felt stupid saying this some other time but... who knows? Maybe the Suger-Queen was rubbing off on her after all. "All your Uncle wanted was for you to find your own path and see the light. And now you're here with us! He'd be proud."_

_When Zuko didn't answer for a while, she grew frustrated and swung out an arm, making contact. "Ow!" Good. Still there. "What was that for?" he demanded._

_"That's how I show affection."_

_"You're a weird one, you know that?"_

_Toph grinned. "So I've been told."_

Anyway, she had her handful of Zuko for the night. Time to trade with the Sugar-Queen. Aang and Sokka both seemed a bit shook up. They were both forcibly pretending everything was fine, but Aang and Katara hardly seemed to be speaking, even though Aang was trying to make a point of staying one step closer to Katara than Zuko was. Despite how hard it was since madam Fussy-Britches was doing her job and fussing over the prince. Toph didn't need to ask to know what was up with that. It was all the Zuko/Katara love in the play. Twinkle-toes had finally put two and two together, and must have realized he had competition. Sugar-Queen would have to choose soon, or Zuko/Hot-Head would have force a confrontation, even if Aang didn't. So, for the time being, all she could do was distract Aang until Katara decided.

Sokka was a bit more challenging of a case. He seemed fine. he even seemed to be the calm and complacent glue that was holding the fracturing group together at the moment, but he was cracking. She knew him well enough to see it, even if..._she_, Suki didn't. His ever adoring Fan-Girl just had to bring up the word Yue once, and the cracked mask became clear. The subject was changed almost immediately, and Sokka began going through drastic mood swings. He would be contagiously happy one moment, then lose himself in thought the next.

Toph sighed. On the surface, dinner was good. But deep down, she was beginning to worry about her friends.

* * *

"What are you doing out here?" Zuko called out.

Which startled Katara. "I didn't realize you heard me." And she thought she was being so quiet too.

The prince smiled. She couldn't see his face, as he was standing on the edge of the little cliff looking out on the sea, but she could tell by the way his jaw tightened what his facial expression was. "I make a point to always know where you are." He turned to face her, his sharp eyes locking on with hers. "Now, why are you here?"

"I, um..." _Stop staring at his eyes! _"I came looking for you."

"Time for another healing session?" he asked when she didn't elaborate.

"Actually, I was just... I was worried about you." She glanced away. That was true. When she had been feeling so numb earlier, it was Zuko that had brought her out of it, intentionally or not. Somehow, no matter what her state, he was able to reach in and grab her heart, whether it was in the middle of the Boiling Rock, the midst of her own sorrow, or out of the confusion she was drowning in. Not that she wasn't confused still. Somehow, secretly, she was hoping to do the same for him. And she was honestly worried about him. "That was pretty rough to watch, I'd imagine."

"Yeah." Zuko shrugged. "Toph already talked to me about it though, so you don't have to come here to do...this." he waved his finger mockingly in the air. "Whatever this is."

"So what are you out here thinking about then?" Katara challenged.

Zuko shook his head, the wind whipping his short hair about his scar. "...I don't suppose you take silence as an answer?" He pushed the bangs off his face, and Katara forced herself not to watch the hand move through his locks. "Figures. Can't even think on my own without someone worrying about me..."

"Hey, that's what friends are for."

His lips quirked somewhat knowingly, though Katara was positive that he had no idea the things she was beginning to think about him. "I'm sure." His dry tone was sometimes so aggravating!

"So, are you going to tell me?"

He held his out hand, and she looked at it in confusion for a moment. "You can call it your question," he offered. "If you want." She hesitated, then reached up and took it.

As she began to work the cooling water out of her case and onto his hand, feeling the last few chinks she hadn't covered crying out to her to mend, she tried to force away some of the confusion she was feeling inside her. _I can't be worrying about something as pathetic as my love life when other people have _real _problems. Like having watched their sister kill them. If I'm meant to be with Aang forever, then we've got plenty of time to figure this out. Forever is a long time, after all. I don't need to worry about it now. I'm only fourteen...  
_

The fear that the play might have been right, that Aang might die in the war, and then there would be no forever hit her, almost paralyzingly. But she swallowed and smashed the fear away. Whatever happened between her and Aang, however long they were meant to be together, or however long it took them to get there, she knew she cared about, more than anyone, and she hoped to all the spirits that he would not die. She had been with him only a year, and already she wasn't sure she could picture trying to live with out him.

_So why can't we be happy together now?_

"I don't want to go out like that."

Katara blinked twice before she realized that Zuko was talking. She had been so absorbed in her own thoughts she had almost forgotten she'd been waiting for the firebender to speak. "Good," Katara agreed. "You shouldn't be scared of Azula-"

"No, that's not it." Zuko sighed. " Truthfully...I've always sort of known that it was eventually going to be me and her. The universe is kind of twisted that way." He said half-jokingly. "Although I really wished it didn't had to come down to that..."

_Like Aang. _She surprised herself with the thought, but knew immediately it was true. _It's something I've always known would happen someday. He pretty much said the same thing._

"Well, if that's not it, what are you thinking of?" Katara prompted, trying to keep her own jumbled thoughts clear. _I'm helping him. I'm helping him. After the mess I've been lately, it's my turn to be strong, so PAY ATTENTION!_

"I don't...I don't really want... to die, well... who want's to die anyway?!..." His face contorted into a sour expression as he tried to express his anger. "I mean, if I have to die, even like that, I don't want to do it... you know, screaming something like...Honor. It's just... That's so lame!"

A mere moment of silent or two fell between them.

Then Katara suddenly felt a strange urge to giggle. She tried very hard to suppress it, but a small bit came through. Zuko turned his most perfect blank face on her, and she stifled the laugh. "I'm sorry! It's just, of all the horrible things you had to deal with... lame? You're worried about if the line your actor gave in death was _lame?_ That is so like...like my brother!"

"It's not like that!" Zuko protested. "And...please don't compare me to your idiot of a brother." He chuckled slightly himself. "It's more like... I'm not concerned with my image or anything." Zuko walked around the cliff face some more before he finally settled in by looking up at the beautiful starry sky above. " More like, what's important to me. They say your life flashes before your eyes when you're about to die, so in a moment like that, you can tell what is most important to you, right?" Katara nodded, understanding the logic, if not the point. "I guess it just feels really lame to me to think that the most important thing in my life is some washed up sense of honor."

"But your honor's important to you!" Katara protested. "Zuko without honor is like... like..." She couldn't even think of a comparison.

"You without hope?"

She quirked her lips at him. " Don't push it. I was going to say Sokka without a joke, but..." She waved her hand dismissively.

"I still have my honor, of course," he explained. "But I've learned that it's not something you go hunting for. You either have it, and live by it, or you don't. I can't run around trying to earn it from someone who won't give it to me. I feel like the Zuko to whom honor mattered more than anything was over a life time ago."

"So what's important to you now then?" Katara asked.

"That's what I've been thinking about." Zuko turned back to look at the sea. "When I die, if I die, what last word do I want to be on my lips? what should the last words of the fallen Fire Prince Zuko be?" He mocked his own title, something Katara felt was unecessary.

Katara's tongue darted out to lick her own, the wind suddenly feeling chilling against them. "So, what did you decide?"

Zuko flushed. "...I don't want to tell you." Like a little boy that did not want his mother to find out about a horrible deed he had done, Zuko turned his face away from hers.

"But it was my question!" Katara protested, letting the hand she was healing drop to put her fists on her hips. "It's not fair if you don't answer it!"

"I don't think you'll like the answer."

"I don't like a lot of things about you, remember?"

He flinched. "It'll probably scare you away."

"More so than your kiss? 'Cause if you haven't noticed, I'm still here." Katara's face and voice softened as she stated what she truly felt.

Zuko didn't answer. His fists clenched once, then opened, as if he was forcing them to relax. Katara sighed, and reached down to take the hand she had just dropped in her own, twining her fingers in it to be supportive, finding his hand warm, despite the wind. "Tell me?" she asked again.

"Why do you always feels like you have to know everything?" His voice sounded a bit annoyed.

"...I just do."

"Well maybe that's what I don't like about you."

"Hum..." She smiled. "I can live with that."

He fell quiet again. "Zuko?" She squeezed his hand. "What word do you want to have on your lips when...no...if you.... not that you're going to, of course...." Katara noticed she was already rambling.

"Of course." Zuko coughed as if trying to alleviate the awkward atmosphere.

"...Then... Tell me...What's more important than your honor?" she rephrased.

"If... If I have to die, I would rather die saying..."

"Yes?"

He blushed a deep red, and whispered, almost beneath the wind. "...Your name..."

Katara felt her breath catch. After everything with Aang, now this? "Zuko, I..."

"I know, don't bother," he said, his hand sliding free of hers. "You just asked, so I told you. I said you wouldn't want to hear. It's just... Knowing that I could die like that, at any time, tomorrow, next week - right now even! - it made me decide that I want to do everything I can right now. I don't want to go out with regrets. If I go without trying, I'll always be asking myself "what if"? And if it doesn't work out, if it's not meant to be forever, who cares? I'll cling to it, right now, today, because it makes me feel alive. You make me feel alive, Katara. I know I have this...complicated thing with Mai but...It's confusing. I... just wanted to you let you know how I feel about you, and that we can deal with tomorrow when it co-"

Zuko's rambling cut off with a grunt as Katara flung herself suddenly forward into his arms. His voice was smothered as her lips crushed into his, her arms wrapping around his head.

No wavering hand, no hesitating lips, no hesitation, no awkward tension.

Not anymore.

And she didn't regret it for a second.

Maybe this was what was suppose to happen. Even if it was not, she did not care. She felt good.

Who cares about tomorrow anyway? Forever would come eventually.

For tonight, she wanted no "what ifs".


	40. Chapter 40:Decisions

**Author's Note:**

_artsyelric: F***ING JESSIE MCCARTNEY! (i can't even spell his name!) NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

_OOOOO00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo_

_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.................... . . . .  
_

**Trombe: ...she's just upset cause of the casting for the live action Avatar trilogy  
**

_artsyelric: on an actual author's note, sorry i've been to busy to answer reviews these last few chapters. when i said trombe was keeping the story afloat, i meant it. you may now worship him. i did read all of them, and i will try to respond to them again starting with this chapter. sorry. the good news behind me not messing in a while is: i made a lot of money on some gigs, and i might be working at borders for a while when next i update. exciting huh? mmm... books..._

**Trombe: Zug-Zug**

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 40: Decisions  
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Panic and surprise coursed throughout the prince's vain as he felt those soft lips intertwine with his, cutting off his speech. All he remembered seeing was her ice blue eyes and himself falling into them before bliss and heat took over his senses. He did not flinch or move away. The questions his mind was reeling to ask faded as he let his emotions take over. He had hungered for those lips, and like a wolf that had finally caught it's prey, they were now, finally, his. He strongly pulled her small figure close to him, wrapping his arms around her slim, bare waist. He could feel her arms wrapping around his neck, pulling back.

But as quickly as it had happened, Katara seemed to have regained her senses and drew away from the kiss they shared.

"....."

The air was tense, as both eyed each other, not knowing what to say next. Zuko's figure towered over the smaller waterbender, her head elevated slightly to match his gaze.

"...Katara..." His voice was hoarse, coated with shock and disbelief.

"I... I... I'm so sorry..." Concern was etched upon her pretty face as she tried to look away, a futile gesture as Zuko still had his strong arms wrapped around her. "...I don't know what came over me... I- mph!" Katara squeaked as Zuko continued what she had began, her eyes opening wide as she felt Zuko's strong presence devouring her, before she finally decided to cave in as well.

It was a strong, intense kiss. Innocent it was not. By the time their lips parted the two were panting hard, their chests expanding, trying to breathe the precious air they had taken for granted.

Zuko was overwhelmed with the desire to hold Katara closer, tighter, as close as she could possibly be. Senses had left him as all he wanted to do was feel the joined sensation they had shared one more time. Katara did not seem to object as he brought about his face closer once more.

In his haste, Zuko momentarily lost his rigid stance and felt his feet trip on a loose rock. A yell of surprise erupted from his mouth along with Katara's as he had dragged the Water Tribe girl down with him, both of them plummeting to the ground.

With a thud, Zuko's back collided with the soft earth, a slight weight resting on his chest. Finally finding the strength to open his eyes again he found Katara breathless, her palms firmly planting themselves against his chest, her face inches apart from his.

For some reason or another, Zuko let out a breath of relief before feeling light headed, and he found himself laughing at their situation. Katara had a puzzled look on her brow at first before giggling herself, joining her laughter with his. It did not seem an appropriate time to enjoy what must have been twisted humor but somehow the two had just found the world to be so hilarious. What, exactly, was so funny, neither knew, but at that moment laughter just seemed so necessary that it bubbled over in unceasing waves.

Unfortunately a saying that his uncle was once fond of popped into Zuko's head. The fool who laughs without cause eventually finds his humor as bleak as his future.

His laughter died quickly. Katara soon followed suit, but even after the two had calmed down, the intensity in their eyes had not.

Zuko stared at her, still wondering dimly if he had somehow slipped into a dream, or if the girl he had been craving was really laying on his chest, staring back at him like that. But small pains from the fall told him this was no dream. Somehow, some way, she was truly there. "...I don't understand, Katara. I thought... I thought we were-"

"I don't understand myself either..."

Katara nodded sadly, her weight suddenly seemed heavier. Her arms turned to jelly leaving Katara with no choice as she slowly descended into Zuko's chest, sinking into it as if all she wanted was to rest her pounding head against his shoulder. Her face, red with embarrassment buried itself there - an act which confused the prince even further as he tried to calmly reason out what to do in his particular situation. His arms seemed to have their own idea as they wrapped without his consent around the waterbender girl, embracing her closer.

But suddenly Katara's hands collided with her cheeks and she flushed. She shook her head vehemently, apparently particularly disturbed by her actions. Her lips quivered slightly under her touch, as if the very act that they had done had been indecent, or maybe as if she was fighting back tears. "AH!" she squeaked. "I can't believe I... Zuko, I'm sorry-"

"Katara..." Zuko nonchalantly called out the name of his current desire. She seemed so unsure, so confused. He did not know if he was taking advantage of the situation, but all he wanted to do was hold this slightly trembling girl in his arms. If he wanted those soft lips to be his, so what? Was that so wrong? Was wanting to have this... amazing girl to himself so wrong? "What now?"

Finally permitted, the words gushed from the waterbender like blood from a wound. "I just finished telling Aang that I needed time and now this?! Oh how stupid of me!" Katara started on what he was sure would be more of her mindless ranting. Apparently whatever courage or madness she had to initiate the kiss had long left her. Reason and sense had returned. "He'd going to think I'm some kind of... floozy!" Her head buried deeper into her own hands.

"Katara..."

"What was I thinking?" she demanded. "Kissing you! Why?!" Then her eyes turned back up to his, the familiar shifting strength glaring out. "This... this is your fault!"

"Katar- ...What?" Zuko was flabbergasted; she had just not turned the tables on him!

"Y-y-you with your... 'live now and never regret' speech thing! H-h-how did I fall for it? Why did I fall for it?!" Once again her gaze swept back to his. "Why would you do that?!"

Earlier, it had seemed almost impossible to release the slim waterbender girl from his embrace. Zuko sure as hell felt it easier to let go now. His face was positively fuming with agitation.

"It's... my fault?!" he ground the words through his teeth, trying to sound as gentle as his fury would allow him to be. The girl was acting so ridiculous! _What are we even arguing about anyway? I'm so confused!_

"Yes, yours!" Katara accused. "I was... confused and then I did... and then it felt... But... you kissed me again! You shouldn't have done that!" Katara's face went through many transformations as she awkwardly tried to defend her reasoning.

"How is that... my fault?!" he tried to puzzle it out. Déjà vu clouded the prince's head, as he had felt familiar grounds being threaded once more. Fighting with Katara seemed so like second nature. "_What _is my fault?!"

"I... I... I don't know! But it is! It should be!" But this time the waterbender girl's resolve was weak, as if she was trying to hold on to something she felt comfortable with, not wanting to cross the boundaries that certainly faced them now. Still, she tried desperately to hold out. "We shouldn't be doing this!"

Katara's eyes were slightly watering. Suddenly, Zuko knew he had to act now if he ever wanted a chance to turn this whole thing around. She was obviously feeling the same things he was, but he understood now what her problem was.

"Katara..."

"We shouldn't have done that!"

"Katara..."

"I shouldn't have felt so happy!"

"Katara!!!"

He roared it as her head snapped back up. His hands latched unto her shoulders, his eyes burning with the fire of a thousand suns, though he could not see it. Katara's confident image shattered, her nagging persona retreating back into the recesses of her mind. All that was left was a girl that seemed frightened, cowering under his gaze. She lowered her head, not wanting to make eye contact.

It was never his intention to scare Katara like that. Far from it. He wanted to reassure her.

With that simple thought, he found his gaze had softened and his touch grown gentler. "Katara... Look at me." The voice that spoke out was that of the Prince of the Fire Nation, along with all the regal and dignified power behind it, leaving Katara little choice but to follow the command.

With her quivering lips, watery blue eyes that dwarfed even the blue of the sea, and the lost, defeated look she had given him, Zuko had found the most beautiful girl in the world right in front of him. How could the strings of his heart not be tugged?

"...Here..." He took hold of her lifeless right hand and pressed it right over his chest - an act which surprised the waterbender.

"Do you feel that?"

A beat. His heart beat. It pulsed with a strong life, although its beat was erratic and wild. Right now it was beating so fast.

"That," he explained, "is what I feel for you." His eyes were determined as he locked his golden gaze with hers.

There was no embarrassment with the way he said it. There was no denying anymore about how he felt for this girl.

Katara's face seemed to have lifted up for a moment before a gasp escaped from her lips from Zuko's next action. He had rested his head upon her breast!

Frozen with surprised, Katara quickly found heat rising up to her cheeks as Zuko failed to notice her flushed features. His intent was more innocent then she obviously had suspected.

"And this," he whispered ever so softly, feeling his arms snake around her again to pull her close enough that he could hear. "Ba-bump... ba-bump... ba-bump..." he timed hers aloud, "...is what you feel for me..." A smile had spread its way across Zuko's face; he had found the satisfying answer to what he had been searching for for a long time.

Katara could not take her eyes off the boy, not for a moment, even when Zuko had returned to his original posture. He was making it up as he went and so far it looked like he saying what was needed to be said. He prayed he had enough wisdom to carry through with his final words. He prayed Katara would finally listen to what he was truly feeling.

"When our own hearts are this honest... can you tell me then... How is this wrong, Katara?" he asked as directly as he could.

It was the final gambit. Katara's tears were flowing freely now down her cheeks, without her noticing. Finally, she sobbed quietly once, and tried to wipe away her tears with her hands futilely. The salty drops were blinding her.

But when Zuko moved to embraced her again she did not move away, nor did she flinched from his touch.

With everything now said and done, all that was left was a boy comforting a crying girl under the canopy of the stars.

Somehow the world suddenly felt brighter then.

* * *

It had taken some time before her crying had ceased but she was all the more beautiful for it when she did. At least that's what Zuko had felt as he continued to gaze quietly at his - yes, _his - _waterbender.

"Stop staring, you idiot," Katara whispered as she dried her tears, her tone more like someone who was sulking because they were finally defeated than actually insulting.

"You think I can help myself?"

Zuko found it irresistible to tease her. No, there was no more hiding from Katara. No more mind games. He had given her the truth and she with him. It was almost too good to be true, but slowly he was starting to believe it really was.

"Pfft." Katara puffed up her cheeks in a sulky manner, which caused the prince to wrap his arms around her tighter; Katara was always so strong... when did she became so fragile?

"You cold?" Zuko asked, mildly concerned.

The wind of the night had become a little bit cooler, a little bit stronger. Being close to the sea, the wind was more at home to howl and rage as it was to gust or sweep. Tonight, it was tossing somewhat sharply, making Katara's beautiful hair and the grass beneath their feet dance under the power of its gales.

Katara tilted her head as if considering. "...A little..." she answered reluctantly, as if hesitant to admit it despite how obvious it was.

Zuko simply nodded and began rubbing her back with his warm hands, hands that were meant to fire bend. If he had no scarf or blanket to spare for her, he would warm her up with the power that he was born with. It only seemed natural.

"...Why do you like me so much?"

Katara's question seemed muffled as her head snuggled against his chest. The question itself seemed so out of the blue. Not because of the content but because of the untimely manner and the tired way she asked.

"Does it really matter?" Zuko replied as he shook his head. She knew how he felt. Shouldn't that be enough?

The way she stared at him seemed to say otherwise.

Zuko sighed. "What's not to like about you? You're smart, brave, talented, and... just so..."

"If you're going to say beautiful I'm going to-"

"Beautiful."

Zuko gave a small smile, which caused Katara to hesitate. He had called her bluff, and he had won. Zuko was on a winning streak. He just had to snicker at her silence which earned a playful slap on the chest from the blue eyed waterbender.

"Well... what about you?" Now it was his turn to ask. "Do you-"

"You know exactly how I feel, and you're going to make me say it now too? Don't you have any manners? I am a girl, you know," Katara responded to the awkwardly romantic situation the only way she knew how.

"Yeah, I know... I know." Zuko ended it there. He pretty much knew that was what she was going to say. It is sort of embarrassing to just suddenly up and say your affections for a person, especially when they were right in front of you. _Besides, _he reminded himself patiently, _she's still very new at all this. I doubt she got very far at all with Aang... _Plus, just having her tonight was good enough for him, even if she wasn't ready to say it yet. He smiled at the thought, and then voiced it. "After all this time... I actually got to you." Cheesy or not, Zuko just had to say it out loud, especially after all he'd been through with her - it was just the start of a wonderful beginning, he was sure of it.

Her face flushed, and her lips pursed. "S-shut up!"

Their tender playing continued for a few more seconds before Zuko hungered for her lips once more. This time they touched tenderly, learning the feel of each other. It was awkward at first, but gradually developed into sensual bliss.

* * *

The young Avatar was tired and yet his feet continued to restlessly walk as he meandered aimlessly about the beach house. He had not talked to Katara since the incident at the balcony and he somehow felt that she was purposely avoiding him.

"Hey champ," Sokka's familiar voice broke him out of his trance. "How you holding up?"

"Huh? What?" Aang's jaw was slacked with surprise. Did Sokka know? About the kiss? About this whole, stupid, mess? "Why wouldn't I be okay?" he asked, too quickly.

"I mean about the play... you know?" Sokka re-iterated.

A wave of relieve came over the twelve year old Avatar. "Oh yeah... the play..."

"What did you think I was talking about?"

"Oh. Nothing. Uh, it's nothing at all." The Air Nomad tried desperately to cover his nervous trail which, thankfully, the older Water Tribe boy did not pick up on.

Sokka waved a wildly loose hand in what Aang supposed was supposed to be a submissive gesture. "Look the whole play is-"

"Stupid," Aang cut him off quickly. "I get it. I know. It's all right. We've discussed it already, remember?"

Sokka lifted one eyebrow as if he doubted the Avatar's word, but eventually he decided to shrug the conversation off. It should have been pretty clear that talking about the play was taboo around the Airbender. Aang was just hoping Sokka would take the hint already and just drop the subject.

Whether it was his feelings that made it clear, or just Sokka being plainly ignorant, the matter was dropped easily.

Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be the end of Sokka's pack of unpleasant subjects."So, uh, about this whole Fire Lord thing..." Sokka trailed off, obviously waiting for Aang to fill in the rest.

Aang had known it was only a matter of time before someone mentioned Fire Lord Ozai again. At least this time it was Sokka and not Zuko. The young Avatar just did not know what to say to the prince, who was adamant in his stance of taking down the Fire Lord_ permanently_. "What about it?" he asked, cautiously, hoping Sokka wasn't also planning to heckle him with endless attempts at driving him to murder.

But Sokka just shrugged quizzically. "I dunno. Katara and I were just talking about it, that's all, and..." his eyes grew a bit more serious than 'normal' Sokka, and Aang knew this was now their tactician speaking. "We think the comet is awfully close."

"Well, duh," Aang groaned. "Thanks for the reminder - _again. _Like I don't think about it all the time on my own, or I need someone to remind me every few minutes."

But Sokka let the boy's frustrated sarcasm slide. "Aang, why are we trying to stop him before the comet?"

"So he doesn't become insanely powerful and wipe out the rest of the resistance and us!" Aang snapped unhappily, crossing his arms. "I said I _know_."

"What resistance?"

"What?" Aang blinked twice at Sokka's sudden question. "What do you mean, 'what resistance'?"

"I mean, who's left? Ba Sing Se? It's gone, Aang. The Dai Li work for Azula. Bumi's a captive in his own city, and no one but Fire Nation colonists live in Omashu now - or should I say New Ozai."

"What about the North Pole?" Aang spoke up. "Aren't they still fighting?"

"No one's attacked there since Zhao's gigantic catastrophe," Sokka admitted, "but even so, the Northern Water Tribe was pretty devastated. They're in no condition to continue this war. If it weren't for you, they'd have been completely wiped out."

"And Yue," Aang added fondly.

Sokka grimaced slightly, and tried to cover it. "Yeah. And Yue." His eyes flickered up towards the moon for the barest of moment, before glancing away.

Aang tapped his chin, thoughtfully. It was off topic, yes, but he'd been meaning to say this for a while now, and the play just emphasized it... "Sokka, um... Have you told Suki about Yue yet? She didn't seem to know, you know, back at the play."

Sokka just glared at Aang, a bit angry (as if Aang had pried, not just made a friendly comment) and bit sad too. "Anyway," he over emphasized the word, "my point is, if it was attacked again, with or without the comet, it would fall. The Fire Nation doesn't need any help to crush them, and the Northern Waterbenders know it. Dad reported that they were finally mobilizing. Northern waterbenders and warriors have been trickling down to join what little remains of rebel troops. Many of the Northern Pole's inhabitants are leaving the city, spreading out, forming tribes, and hoping to reconvene when the war ends - assuming it does."

"It will," Aang insisted determinedly.

Sokka nodded agreement. "It has to. But... it's not like we're on a time limit, Aang."

The boy blinked.

"There's really not that much left to save. We've no real safe ground any longer, no where to call a home base. The only places in the world not crawling with firebenders are the North Pole and Kyoshi Island. Maybe we should take our time, reconvene with whoever is left to fight, gather forces, do some prison raids, etc."

"Sokka, what are you saying exactly?"

"I'm saying that maybe you don't have to do this alone." Sokka leaned back on the railing to stare at Aang. "There's not enough left of the world to risk the Avatar's life to save. Stop rushing ahead madly, like we did at the Invasion. We need to gather strength, you need to learn firebending - _and _earthbending. Let the comet pass. Let Ozai wave around his super powers with nothing to target, nothing to gain, no where left to hit. We'll hide, and strike when we're ready, not when Ozai tells us to."

"You're afraid we'll run into another trap," Aang realized. "Like at the invasion."

Sokka exhaled heavily. "Yes, Aang," he said, his voice heavier than Aang had ever heard it before. "I am. And, even worse, I'm worried it will come out just like that play did tonight."

"You mean where Ozai got the comet and I died?"

"Exactly." Sokka turned his gaze back to Aang. "We can't lose you," he said, his voice somewhat desperate. "At this point, you're just about all the rebellion has left. I know you hate hiding, Aang, but we can't throw you away to save nothing. I mean, what's left for you to protect anymore?"

Aang scowled. "Those are Katara's words."

"I told you she and I already talked about it."

"So she agrees with you then?" Aang asked darkly.

"Yeah," Sokka nodded. "She was actually the one who brought it up. She cares about you, Aang. We all do. And we know how necessary you are to this war. I even spoke to Toph about it a bit, on the way back from dinner. She said it's 'our job, as your teachers, to protect you' and that she agrees with me. You're not _ready_." That last bit made Aang wince. "She's prepared to go in there and face Ozai tonight if she needs to, and is probably fine with the idea of dying for you, though she's too proud to say she'd ever lose a fight. We're all ready to follow you, Aang - I'm not saying we won't. But, the decision's yours." The blue eyes crossed Aang's with the harsh, infinite patience of the ocean. "Are you ready to face the Fire Lord?"

All of Zuko's prodding, his goading and insistence that Aang be prepared to kill the evil man, all of his own tightly held reservations and fears about the confrontation, seemed to swoop in on him at once. It was overwhelming, and Aang knew, immediately, the answer that all his teachers seemed to have reached before him.

"No. I'm not."

* * *

Zuko did not know when he had returned back to his quarters, and frankly, he didn't care. All that occupied his thoughts were a certain pair of blue eyes. His body was light, despite the weariness of the day's training and having to watch that agonizing play. It was definitely a powerful thing, this new found feeling...

Lying down upon his soft bed, his mind still continued to replay the scenes and events of tonight without delay, something which caused a small smirk to appear on Zuko's face. Who had ever thought that Katara would not only finally accept his feelings, but reciprocate them as well? Tonight had been a good night - despite the play.

The prince slowly closed his eyes, lulled by the prospect of a good sleep and a peaceful dream.

And dream he did.

_Where he was, he did not know. It all seemed too blurry to be real; as if the world was covered in glass while he looked upon in from the other side. _

_Zuko felt he was floating._

_He heard... voices? No, just a single voice. It was feint, like it was far away, yet he knew that voice. Somehow, he knew he did._

_It started out a slight whimper. "...Zuko..." The voice trailed off. It was so soft that Zuko could barely hear the call, but he knew it was directed at him._

_Who? Who was calling?_

_"Zuko... I'm scared... where are you?"_

_Who? Who was scared? Who needed him? The prince was getting nauseous as he spun his head around, frantically trying to locate where the cry was coming from, but finding nothing but the blurry world._

Where are you?!_ he wanted to cry out, but in the dream worlds there are often things, simple things eve, that we forget how to do. And so his mute self desperately tried to reach out, futilely seeking the crier._

_"How could you leave me? How could you let me be... alone? It's so cold here... and I'm so sca-"_

_"WHERE ARE YOU?!" Finally words came to him, louder than he had meant them, like roaring in the quiet dreamland._

_He cut off the pleading voice as the powerful cry tore from his throat. His own shout shattered the mirror-like world to reveal the true nature of the haunting voice that called him._

_As his vision became clear, as the voice's owner appeared from the fog, how he wished he had not remembered how to see..._

_"No... Mai..."_

_Her porcelain skin was covered with cuts and bruises. Her once determined features had faded as she lay there, shackled and chained to the ground, like a rabid animal._

_"M-Mai... What? How could... This can't be..."_

_But something else in head head whispered that it could... He had left here, somewhere where this horrid scene could be very real indeed. A place that still haunted his own nightmares._ The Boiling Rock...

_As he stared at her, she seemed, suddenly, to see him, as if she had known all along he was there, but just as she had materialized to him, so was he now appearing to her. A fierce glint arose in her eyes as she directed her weary form upon the source of her pain. "You said you loved me..."_

_"I-I do..."_

_All it took was one measly word for his promise to be shattered. _

_"Liar..."_

_Out of the air flames began to consume Zuko's form in a powerful blaze. Heat tore up his skin, fire burning into him in a way he hadn't felt since he lost his eye. He opened his mouth to let his scream tear free and-_

-and then he was awake.

Zuko shot out his bed. A cold sweat continued to drench his body, his breathing erratic, and his arms rattling and shaking restlessly. "Mai..."

His voice rasped against his sore, sleep-coated throat as he covered his face beneath his palms, ashamed of what he forgotten - or rather what he had chosen to put aside. Before Katara, Mai had always been there by his side during his troubled times. She, was the one who he owed his current freedom to. And how did he repay her?

By being with another woman.

The realization of what had happened tonight finally came to be and the prince responded with the fury and anger the old Zuko would have been proud to have witnessed, as he banged his fist against the frame of his bed. How could he have forgotten? How? Even when Katara was faced with her own dilemma with Aang he could not see the mirror image of his own situation in her?!

And yet that was not what his anger was directed at.

By all means, When Zuko had left he had stated it was over between him and her. He had decided. He had chosen. He had forsaken Mai and the Fire Nation.

And yet, with their threads of fate severed, how was it possible to still feel as if he had committed... infidelity?

_Is it because she chose to save me in the end? She turned traitor for me - so... are we not over? Or am I just guilty because I left her in the Boiling Rock... _He shivered, having been avoiding thoughts of that place as much as possible. It still gave him nightmares from time to time. _Mai..._

Whatever prayer he had given as of last night to thank the gods for Katara's embrace he had taken back. He had always known they were never that kind. There was always a price... even for his joy.

Finally having had enough wallowing he threw his pillow hard against the wall, and watched as it exploded feathers on impact. As the white, light pieces slowly descended into the ground, Zuko felt a strangely vindictive pleasure in their fall.

"Thanks," he muttered with sarcasm. "Thanks a lot..." If Zuko had been Fire Lord that moment, he would have ordered the destruction of all the temples along with the old gods with their twisted sense of humor.

As if to mock him one last time, a trail of sunlight had streaked into the room. Somehow as late as he had stayed up, Zuko had woken up as he had almost always done; with the coming of the dawn, no matter how tired he was.

Which caused the prince to be more irritated. He had figured that the coming day would have been so much more brighter, more pleasant. The dream did not change how he felt for Katara nor did it change what he told her that night, he meant every word of it.

_That did not change!_

However... it did not substitute the feeling of shame he had from throwing away his feelings for Mai like that so casually.

So much for the power of love.

His previous high had ended as quickly as it began. Zuko was now back into the realm of reality, along with its problems and tribulations. The cover of night had covered over Zuko's reasoning and had put him under it's spell. The coming of the morning's light dispelled any lingering thoughts he had of Katara's tender soft lips.

He groaned with frustration.

The day was going to be a long one. There was much thinking, and therefore brooding, to be done.

* * *

Katara yawned and stretched, feeling Suki roll over in bed beside her and buried her brunette locks beneath a pillow, snuggling into the bed as if searching for a few last seconds of slumber she had stored in there the night before. Katara slipped out of the fluffly bed as quietly as possible, perfectly willing to let the other girl sleep.

She padded quietly over to the mirror and wash stand she knew was Azula's. She had gotten over being averse to using the princess' stuff by telling herself that it wasn't 'Azula room', but the supplies and room she and Suki had been given by Zuko.

Zuko.

Oh yeah.

She watched the blush creep up her own cheeks in the mirror's reflection, and knew she deserved it. She had never before acted so recklessly, without concern for the future, or, well really, anything else except her desire at that moment.

_Okay, well maybe not just _that _moment, _she amended. Now that she had actually kissed Zuko ( the memory bringing heat upon her cheeks once more) she knew she had been wanting to for a long time. But her head always got in the way. After all, Zuko and Katara dating... well it just made no_ sense._

First of all (she started into the familiar list she'd comprised at some point in her head as to 'Why I Should Not Date, Kiss, or Otherwise Encourage Zuko') they fought _all _the time. It wasn't anything like it was with Aang, with whom she got along with most of the time, but she and Zuko were like puma-cats and lion-dogs. Even when they were getting along (as they had been lately) their viewpoints were just so different that they were bound to fight again. They'd been fighting last night, even as he'd kissed her! But somehow, that hadn't mattered then...

Of course, there was still reason number two. That was that Katara was absolutely certain that whatever Zuko was, he was not good for her. She was completely positive about this. Aang was. Aang was completely and undeniably ultimately good for Katara. Aang always knew what she needed, supported her, kept her doing things right. Zuko was filled with wild abandon, and a sense of wickedness. It was with him she had set off to kill a man to avenge her mother. It was with Zuko that she found herself in three of her worst memories in life (Aang's near-death in Ba Sing Se, the Boiling Rock, and Bloodbending) and through him that she had been forced to face her absolute worst memory (her mother's death). Well, okay, maybe that last one had been good for her, in a very twisted way, but still, Zuko was most assuredly not good for her. He'd even said it himself. But she still wanted him.

She growled to herself, and stopped even counting the list. All of the arguments she had carefully constructed didn't' seem to hold any weight at all. The only thing that mattered in even the slightest way was Aang. She knew that finding out what she had done with Zuko would crush him, especially after last night at that _stupid _play. From the very beginning of her journey, Aang had been the center of her life, her focus. A part of him still was. He _mattered. _But Zuko mattered too, now. _Especially after last night. The way he held me, kissed me, as if there was nothing else... It was so strong, so overwhelming-_

Katara splashed her face with water, trying to wake the rest of her way up out of the daydream. Whatever else was going on, however the war turned, whatever Aang needed, she realized that she wanted to be with Zuko. _And what I want matters too, right?_

In the day light, her answer was the same as it had been the night before. They both knew this wasn't forever. It could last a life time, or end with the next sunrise. Whatever it was though, it was enough for her for now. She had missed out before, with Jet, because of her stubborn morals, because she had acted too late, and while she didn't want to replace Jet with Zuko (not at all), she didn't want to make the same mistake twice. She wouldn't. If Zuko did go out like he had in that play - and Katara was already absolutely determined to make sure nothing like that EVER happened to him, or Aang - she didn't want to lose him without knowing she had tried.

_I'm not losing either of them, _she promised herself. _I am not that blindly hopeful love-struck idiot from the play. I am the last of the Southern Waterbenders, and I will thoroughly thrash anyone_ _who touches my boys._

Zuko had been strong for her when she needed him. Perhaps he wasn't the best thing for her, but he was trying, and he wanted to become someone better. He needed her now, to do that. He needed her to face his father as much as Aang did to face the Fire Lord. Katara knew it was time for her to be done acting childish. Now she would be the strength both of them needed to face their demons. And she wouldn't miss a minute of it, of either of them. She and Aang may not be ready for a real relationship, and maybe someday that would change, but for now she would continue to be there for him, as she always had. She just wouldn't tell him about Zuko, until she absolutely needed to, if she ever needed to. She would be there for both of them. She could do it.

She just had to make sure that Zuko felt the same way and would keep his mouth shut.

A light wrap on her door made Katara jump. She set down her washrag and turned to see her brother peeking into the door, and motioning to her. He put a finger over his lips and pointed to Suki, then smiled dreamily at his girlfriend. Katara pursed her lips and chased him out of the girl's bedroom. "You shouldn't spy like that," she chastised in a whisper once the door was shut. "Where's Zuko? Isn't he normally up by now?"

Sokka shrugged. "I saw him head out at dawn. I think he took Aang with him. Looked a bit grumpy though," Sokka added. "Didn't want to question him."

_Why would he be grumpy? _Katara wondered. _Not like I've kissed that many boys, but I thought that what happened last night was wonderful... _Katara, after all, had woken up with a few heavy thoughts, but generally a warm glow she couldn't quite dispel, no matter how depressing or guilty her mind grew. _Stupid Zuko. What's wrong with you?_

_See? Already arguing..._

One voice whispered in her head.

_...yet I still want to kiss him... _

But the voice was drowned out by a second, louder one._  
_

"Katara!" The blue-eyed waterbender blinked and stared at her brother. "I _am _talking here, sleepy-head."

"Sorry... what?" She tried to smile sweetly, but the effect was lost - Sokka was her brother after all, so he was slightly immune.

"I said I talked to Aang last night."

"About... that?"

"Yeah." Sokka nodded. "About the comet."

Katara took a deep breath. "And?"

"He agreed to wait."

She sighed heavily, relief flooding over her. Finally Aang had chosen reason. There would be no horrible, fiery ending like in the play. She would make sure Aang was completely prepared, as powerful and strong as he could be, before she let him anywhere near Ozai. She would have time to get stronger too, and to find out more about Zuko, to help him come to terms with his own past, before she let Ozai anywhere near him. "I'm glad," she whispered. "I was so afraid, after everything that happened at Ba Sing Se, he would be too proud..."

"He made the right decision," Sokka promised, putting a hand on her shoulder. "It'll take more time, but... It's not like things can get any worse, right?"

Katara shrugged sadly. "I don't see how..."

"What's all the heavy talk about?" Suki's voice asked as she poked her head out the door, rubbing her own pair of sleepy eyes. "Normally I prefer breakfast before war meetings."

"No war meeting," Sokka assured her, kissing her cheek and grinning. "Just sibling rivalry."

Suki pouted at him a bit, which made Katara giggle. She had imagined (for one brain-dead moment) Zuko fawning over her in the same way. It had been rather ridiculous, and she not only reconciled herself to the fact that it would never happen, but also sincerely hoped it didn't. She liked Zuko how he was, stoic, stubborn, and grumpy. Well, most of the time. At least she knew she could argue with him without it ruining them. Zuko could take anything she threw, and vice versa. She'd take that over fawning any day.

But Suki seemed to think her giggle was purely for Sokka's antics. "He must be peaky," she said, shrugging. "You, of all people, should know this idiot's twice as goofy before you feed him."

"Oh, I know," Katara assured her roommate as Sokka now took his turn to pout. "I'll get some melons for breakfast, and we can eat them outside. If all that blasting means anything, I think the boys are already at their firebending practice." _Plus, Sokka told me he saw Zuko drag Aang out of bed. Poor boy._

"Sounds great," Suki smiled. "I'll get dressed and meet you there."

Katara glanced at the closed door, suddenly remembering a worry she'd been having and meaning to talk to Sokka about for a while. "When are you going to tell her?" she asked her brother.

"About what?" Sokka grumbled.

"Yue."

"Spirits, not you too, Katara!" He glared at her. "I mean it's not like she's completely in the dark here. I might have told her something back in the Serpent's pass so...in a way she sort of, kind of, has an idea."With the way Sokka was fidgeting told Katara not to buy into her brother's line of thinking.

"Sokka..."

"Jeez...Let me deal with my girlfriend myself, all right?

"Okay, fine." She held up her hands in surrender. "I'm just trying to help, Sokka. That's all."

Sokka turned to Katara with his face still in it's pout. "Then you'd better be making me some really good breakfast melons," he said, and she laughed before hooking her arm into her brothers and dragging him down the stairs with her.

Yes.

This was going to be a good day after all.


	41. Chapter 41:Beach Party

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: so guess who finally went on a writing spree? yes, me! before, it used to be me bugging trombe to write, then he turned the tables on me and for a while has been the one holding up the story (since he was on christmas break from school and i was going NUTS with so much work overload), and now i have a job at borders, and have been making good money freelancing, and then, BAM! i wrote like... two and a half chapters in two days. huzzah. so here you are, enjoy!  
_

**Trombe: Thanks to all our reviews - especially the ones who give long comments, we like those - because we're at 945 reviews as I write this, and will be reaching 1000 very soon if all you guys keep up the good work. Keep giving us long reviews, more longer-er...**

_artsyelric: damn your grammar!_

**Trombe: Zug-Zug**

_artsyelric: stop that! and seriously, thanks for all the love! you reviewers ROCK! we write for you, so tell us what you want! (besides more. we're working on that already XDD) _

**Trombe: Shut up now and let them read.**

_artsyelric: k... enjoy!_**  


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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 41: Beach Party  


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It seemed like hours had past since the sun rose, when in reality it had only been about ten minutes, and still none of his housemates were rising. But Zuko was in no mood for excuses. Stomping down the hall, he saw Sokka's door fly open, and the grumpy boy poked his head out with a frown. One look at Zuko's face though had him biting back whatever stupid comment he was obviously about to spew. Zuko found some satisfaction in that, however short lived it was.

Ignoring him, Zuko hastily made his way to the Avatar's room and opened the door without so much as a knock. Judging by his "You! C'mere!" he was in a mood that declared he was not to be interrupted. Therefore no one dared to question the prince as he dragged the reluctant - and somewhat frightened - boy away from the comfort of his bed. After all, long gone were the days when the gang mistrusted Zuko. Now were the days they simply avoided his rare spurts of anger. Soon enough snores drifted out Sokka's door again.

Minutes later the two could be found at the remains of the courtyard of the beach house, already at it with their firebending lessons.

"Jeez, Zuko, don't you think it's too early for this?" Aang muttered sleepily, obviously just coming awake enough to argue his point with his Sifu.

"You're firebending," the prince pointed out as Aang let out a weak spurt of flames. "As long as the sun is out you WILL firebend!" With his harsh tone and hands crossed over his chest, he gave off the perfect image of a unrelenting teacher.

So, without fail, Aang sighed and continued to perform the opening rituals to their sessions. The muscle warm-ups, the breathing exercises, then finally the firebending taolus and forms such as the dancing dragon.

As the prince continued to watch his apt pupil, Zuko could not help but shake his head. _No, no, no, no!_ _This is pathetic! He's too... weak!_ Somewhere in the back of his mind something was trying to tell him that he had heard similar thoughts before but he ignored it. _If he would just _try _like he meant it, he could be GREAT!_ However, the twelve-year-old master of the elements continued to waste his time in half-comitted efforts. A crime in Zuko's eyes, who had to work every fiber of his being to attain his power.

Yes, Aang was the almighty Avatar. But there was no doubt in Zuko's mind Aang's firebending was weak, like a mere child trying to grasp the power of the flame. It seemed he needed to be pushed _harder_.

"More ferocious!" he ordered. "Imagine striking through your opponent's heart!" Zuko ordered.

The young Air Nomad 's face was grim as he tried to focus on the next blow before he broke out into a groan. "Ugh! I'm trying!"

"Trying is not good enough! Now let me here you roar like a Tiger-Dillo!" The prince knew he sounded arrogant and demanding but damn it all, If Aang wasn't taking this seriously....

The roar of the Tiger-Dillo was a flourish, a final taolu move designed to intimidate your opponent and to entertain the crowd watching an Agni Kai. It was not a hard move to do but it was certainly no beginner's move. Zuko would judge him based on the power and intensity of Aang's attempt at the technique.

Aang whirled around to obey, spewing forth fire from his mouth and through his knuckles. "Rawr..."

Even as flames billowed from both hands and his mouth, he glanced over his shoulder apprehensively at his teacher, knowing full well the prince must have been less than pleased with his conviction and effort.

Sure enough, Zuko's face looked angrier then before. "That sounded pathetic..." Even he hadn't thought it would have been _that _bad. This was more annoying that when he'd had to visit the masters to get back his own strength. Zuko snarled angrily. "I SAID ROAR!"

Aang spun around once more, this time determined to please the strict older boy. As expected of the Avatar the flame was immense and strong, sending a triad of fire blasts projecting from him, accompanied by a heartfelt "RAAAOOOWWWRRR!" which caused Momo to squeal and to take cover behind Zuko's legs.

"Better," he consented. From Katara, hugs and praises were the reward. From Toph, a slap on the back or a punch to the shoulder. From him...discipline. Tough times called for a tougher teacher. "But not there yet. Again."

Before the bald young boy had a chance to groan with frustration, Zuko's attention was elsewhere as he spotted the familiar shape of Katara's figure out of the corner of his eye.

"Katara!" He tried to hide the awkward tone his voice carried, letting his stern face and attitude do the talking. After last night's dream, he was in no good mood to greet her in a casual manner, but he _was _still Zuko, after all... "...Good morning," he called out without feeling.

A casual glance and a small smile from her caused the firebending Sifu's heartbeat to race a little. "Morning Zuko. Aang."

He made the mistake of looking her in the eye and they locked for a single second but that was enough. Flashes of last night began playing in his head once more. Desperately, Zuko shook the feeling with ruthless tenacity. Now was probably not the time to be thinking about her.

"Morning Katara!" As usual Aang seemed happy to see the waterbending girl. "How'd you sleep?"

"Better then usual. Thanks for the concern." She smiled back.

A slight twitch of the muscle, a nervous tick, Zuko could not pinpoint it anywhere on his body but he was sure he felt something. It couldn't have been jealousy, could it?

"Uh, we'd better get back to training." The prince coughed to emphasize his words, not paying attention to the young Avatar beside him who was giving Katara a face that obviously said '_please don't go, he's crazy'._

Only the amused look and slight chuckle from Katara caused Zuko to look back at Aang, convinced that the little trickster was somehow responsible, despite the fact that he only saw a blank expression on the young monk's face.

"Oh," drew his attention back. "Well then don't mind me. Please go ahead."

With the way he looked so softly at the blue eyed bender, no one would have imagined how hard Zuko was on Aang. "Will do. Now, if you'll excuse me..." All his attention was now focused on Aang, and slowly he felt a measure of control and concern returning (somehow he always lost that edge around Katara lately). "We've got a LOT of work to do..."

"Hey, worker-bees!" Sokka's voice called from the entrance behind Katara. "Breakfast!"

Zuko turned his freshly restored glare to his peer, and Sokka wilted visibly, sinking to a seat beside his sister like his bones had melted. Behind him, Suki appeared with a basket of melons and a large cutting knife. She gave a snort at her boyfriend's behavior as Katara took her basket, and Zuko turned back to Aang, content to keep working for as long as the girls could keep the idiot quiet.

"Remember," he told Aang sternly. "Fire comes from the breath - from life. It's our energy. So if you want to produce a good Tiger-Dillo roar you have to- **RRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRR!**" His flames lasted almost a minute, streaming from both fists and his mouth in excess, and he breathed deeply when it cut off before finishing his sentence. "...Like you mean it."

Aang blinked in the residual heat of Zuko's fire, and the prince told himself he wasn't showing off for Katara, he was just trying to make Aang try harder. Well, at least it was not a total lie. Maybe Aang would try and match his prowess for the waterbender as well. Although he surmised that he did not had to hold his own flames until his lungs had burned for air...Still, something inside told him that holding back now would do no one any good. "Again," he ordered instead, ending his train of thought roughly.

Aang nodded, and this time turned and 'roar'ed with slightly more intensity. They had to do this a few more times before Aang was producing anything _near _the strength of Zuko's blasts though. Finally the prince sighed in a 'well, if that's the best you can do' manner. "Okay, from now on I expect you to do all your training exercises with this much effort."

Aang's face fell. His expected praise had obviously turned sour.

Seeing a plausible break in the training, Katara interrupted, freshly sliced melons with bamboo straws for drinking in both hands. "Who wants a nice, cool glass of watermelon juice?" She swirled the ripe fruit inticingly.

Immediately Aang's attention was completely diverted to his crush and her refreshing, fruity beverages. Zuko wanted to glare at Katara for the distraction, but she was smiling so pleasantly, he found it far more difficult than normal. Plus, Aang was already practically jumping for joy at his unexpected break. "Ooh, ooooh! me, Me, MEEE!" he wailed, before turning to dart off, eager for a snack.

"Hey!" Zuko snatched the escaping trainee by the scruff of his collar, and tried to drag the whining child back. "Your lesson's not over yet!" But Aang ignored him and continued to attempt to scramble towards Katara. "Get back here!" he ordered, yanking the kid clear off his feet and holding him like a kitten dangling over the ground.

Aang's feet pumped uselessly in the air a few times, then he finally sagged unhappily in Zuko's gasp. Unfortunately, this pathetic act and Aang's pouting face immediately won Katara's sympathy. Even Suki seemed to fall for the act. "Come on, Zuko," the warrior suggested as her boyfriend slurped his own watermelon juice, "just take a break. What's the big deal?"

The prince felt ready to tear his hair out.

It was obvious everyone was against him on this one. Even Toph, as the girl had taken that exact moment to stride out of the house, snatch up a melon, and bite down on the straw, glaring at the scene she had just walked in on, with a very unhappy Aang dangling a foot off the ground in Zuko's unyielding grasp. Realizing he was absurdly outnumbered, the prince snorted angrily. "Fine."

The moment he released Aang, the Avatar had barely to touch the ground before he was shooting off in an airy cloud of dust, his tongue lolling greedily.

But while Aang gratefully accepted his watermelon and began chugging it, Zuko turned angrily away from the relaxing party, obviously not sharing their ease.

"If you want to lounge around like a bunch of snail-sloths all day, then go ahead," he shot over his shoulder before stomping off.

They were all idiots.

Zuko stomped around the surrounding trees for a while, blowing steam, before returning. He knew he got angry too fast, and that as much as Aang needed to be pushed, there was a fine line between training and overworking. Of course, Zuko wasn't that familiar with it, as he tended to overwork himself, but he knew that it did (technically) exist. He had to remind himself that no matter how desperately the world needed Aang, the boy was still a child, and zuko couldn't project his own anxieties on the boy. He was sure the Avatar was trying, after all. Aang was just far more carefree, even with the doom of the entire world hanging over him, than anyone else Zuko had ever really met. Except maybe Uncle... But then, even Uncle knew when to get serious.

_Patience, _he reminded himself, accompanied by another deep breath. Eventually his anger subsided. He would train Aang. He would face his destiny. He would think of somethig along the way that would free Mai if he can help it, and as for his uncle...well all would fall according to plan when the time came. He would do what needed to be done at the very moment. Getting angry about it wouldn't help. _At least things are finally going well with Katara..._

That tempered his anger. It was gone immediately, replaced with an almost annoying warm glow, quite unlike firebending. But it was better than rage, right?

Calm, he set back off towards the house again. But when he had returned to the training area, he found the place abandoned. He was confused, and a bit worried for a moment, before noticing that they'd taken their melons and straws with them, so they must have left peaceably. A short search sent him following the sounds of his friends voices to the beach, where he peered over the cliff.

The anger he had just strove to control returned with a vengeance, hitting him in the gut and tasting like bile in the back of his throat. Beneath him, on the beach, his bathing-suit clad teammates were all standing around a horrid mound of sand to which Sokka was waving proudly, and a seriously-not-training Aang and Toph were apparently mocking the warrior. Katara was off, much deeper in the water, skimming over it on a sleek slab of ice, and Appa was strolling around the sand (the boy Avatar hadn't been able to go two days without returning for his spirit beast and bringing the bison to Ember Island with them), but Zuko hardly registered any of this. His eyes were locked on the four beach-bums who were ruining his day. Suki said something, and Sokka darted off to plant a big, wet kiss on her cheek, and before he could stop himself, Zuko had thrown himself off the cliff in a whirl of fire, intent on beating the seriousness of firebending training into his disrespectful and disinterested pupil, no matter what it took!

Aang was peering intently at the blob of sand when Zuko's fireball hit with a whoosh and an explosion. "But," the boy was arguing, "it doesn't even look like Su- WAH!"

Toph threw herself aside from his airborne attack as sand pummeled the Avatar and his earthbending teacher alike. Zuko was seeing red. "Get Back HERE!" he roared at the boy, crashing through the pile of flame-blasted sand to a wail from Sokka.

But Aang let out a startled gasp and turned to run from his raging firebending teacher. Which only made Zuko angrier. "Where are you going!" he yelled at the squeaking coward. "Get over here and fight!" He didn't even noticed the miniature city of Ba Sing Se being trampled haphazardly beneath him, his comparatively monstrous feet crushing entire houses and knocking the palace and walls to smithereens.

"What are you doing?" Aang cried, taking refuge behind a sand-Appa he had carved into the beach.

And then Zuko really lost it. The boy was HIDING from him, just like he was hiding from his fate, from Ozai or killing or even (apparently) from Katara. The stupid boy hid from everything! He wasn't the first to say it either - Toph had been damn right. It was time Aang learned.

The HARD way.

Zuko was dimly aware of blasting the sand Appa to bits as he shouted back at Aang, "I'm teaching you a lesson!" and then he was chasing the boy up cliffs, trees, roofs, and anything he could climb, the rage he had held at bay for so long broke free of it's chain, this time Zuko was more than eager to unleash it.

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Back on the shore, fire was erupting everywhere. It had taken Katara a minute to notice, and she cursed herself inwardly for the delay. It just felt so nice to be out on the waves, skimming across the water-

Another burst of flames exploded, sending sand flying across the beach, and Katara saw Aang vault up the cliff in a feat only an airbender could achieve. Zuko's form was already scrambling up the cliff after him when Katara washed into the shallows.

But nobody on the beach was acting at all as they should in an attack. Suki was patting a forlorn looking Sokka half-heartedly as Katara's stupid brother scrambled about in what was now nothing but a pile of slightly charred sand. Toph was stamping her feet with, oddly enough, a slight smile on her face, obviously watching something through her earthbending Katara couldn't see. It most certainly didn't seem right.

"What happened?" she called up the shore to her brother, letting her board melt into the waves as she dashed over to them.

"Zuko's gone crazy!" Sokka reported, flinging sand about his head and dropping wildly to his knees as he attempted to pat his burned sand-mound back into semblance. "I made a sand sculpture of Suki and he destroyed it!" the boy explained in a wail.

Silence.

Suki smacked him in the back of the head, and Sokka winced before adding, "Oh... and he's attacking Aang."

"What!" Katara shouted, charging after the fighting benders.

Toph kicked a bit of sand in the Sokka's face for his stupidity and his girlfriend grabbed him by the arm and hauled him off, Katara hot on their heels.

They passed a burning palm tree. Then they heard a horrible, rocky sound of explosions as pieces of smoking rubble came tumbling off the roof. "They're up there!" Sokka shouted, pointing a finger dramatically at the roof of the villa.

"Thank you, Lord Obvious," Toph snorted at Sokka's declaration. "Was it the giant explosion or the fire blasts that gave them away?"

Sokka glared at Toph, but Katara waved a hand to silence them. "Suki, can you get up there?"

"Without using the stairs?" She grinned like it was a weak challenge, and then moved to climb onto the roof.

But before she could vault up, there was a roar of "Enough!" in a voice too naturally high to be Zuko's, and a half second later the fire prince exploded out of the other end of the house, crashing through a wall and a balcony railing, and soared out into the trees. There were a few grunts that, this time, were clearly Zuko's, and then a thud that announced he'd hit the ground without rolling.

Katara, Sokka, Toph and Suki were already sprinting around the house to where Zuko was groaning as he pushed himself off the ground when Aang appeared through the hole in the house. He looked angry for a moment, then he winced and glanced down at Zuko, worried. "Did I hurt him?" he asked, leaping off the building and floating down to land beside Zuko.

As soon as Katara saw Aang's concerned expression, she knew - even though she had, of course, known it all along - that Zuko hadn't been trying to kill Aang or go back to his old ways or something. This was just another stupid fight between hard-headed boys! She shuffled past Aang with a glare that said 'if you did, you'll be sorry' and helped Zuko sit up. The firebender shook his head once, shaggy hair brushing across his face, and rub his head, but was otherwise, apparently, all right. Frustrated that Aang and Zuko were pummeling not just each other, but the house, she angrily swatted Zuko's shoulder (for all the good it did) and snapped, "What's wrong with you? You could have hurt Aang!"

Zuko glowered, obviously insulted to be immediately assumed to be in the wrong. "What's wrong with me?" he demanded, finding his feet. "What's wrong with all of you?" Katara crossed her arms impatiently, waiting to hear the rest of the prince's reasoning behind attacking Aang. _This had _better _not be because of me! I'll kill them BOTH! ...and then myself. I should have told Zuko to keep it quiet right away... _But then Zuko shouted something that took her by surprise. "How can you sit around having beach parties when Sozin's Comet is only three days away!?"

_Ah, well, at least we can explain that_, Katara thought to herself.

But everyone else shifted their feet uneasily, and Katara realized that it was quite possible no one had actually _told _the prince their plan to wait. She glanced at him with a slightly apologetic stare as she stood and stepped back next to Toph.

By this point it was getting pretty obvious that no one _had _actually told Zuko. Embarrassed at the oversight, the Avatar gang all glanced around uncomfortably until Zuko finally asked, "Why are you all looking at me like I'm crazy?" He was apparently just now realizing that he'd been left out of some kind of loop.

"About Sozin's Comet," Aang started, and Sokka and Katara moved a step closer to him to back him up. After all, it had been their idea as much as his. "I was actually going to wait to fight the Fire Lord until after it came."

"After?" The word didn't seem to sit to well with Zuko.

Aang took a deep breath before proceeding. "I'm not ready," he stated. "You know it more than anyone. I need more time to master firebending."

"And frankly," Toph added wearily, "your earthbending could still use some work too." Aang made a slightly put out face, but didn't deny it.

"Thanks," he muttered sarcastically instead.

"No problem, Twinkletoes." Toph smiled helpfully.

But Zuko was staring at them all with a slightly incredulous look on his face. It grew slightly hurt when it turned on Katara, a face that said_ You could have told me_. The waterbender would not meet his gaze. "So, you all knew Aang was going to wait? All of you?" She didn't think he had any right to sound so disappointed - after all, he should be happy he would have the time to train Aang properly now!

"Well, duh," Toph cut in, and Katara was extremely grateful for the blunt way she handled the prince's distress. "It was kind of obvious. No one told _me _and I still figured it out." The distance Zuko had been putting between himself and the rest of the group loosened slightly as he stopped feeling so excluded, and Katara secretly thanked the earthbender.

"Honestly," Sokka argued the point, "if Aang tries to fight the fire lord right now, he's gonna lose. No offense." Aang nodded in sad understanding as Sokka shrugged dismissively.

Feeling that they were doing rather a pathetic job of explaining why everyone had decided to wait, Katara took up the torch. "The whole point of fighting the Fire Lord before the comet was to stop the Fire Nation from winning the war. But they pretty much won the war when they took Ba Sing Se." She noticed Zuko flinch slightly at the memory. "Things can't get any worse," she added, finding it hard to keep meeting his eyes now.

Katara sighed as she glanced at her bare feet, and waited for Zuko to come to some sort of understanding. But the words that met her ears weren't accepting at all. In fact, they held more "Zuko" in them than anything he'd said so far. The were hard as steel, undeniably sad, and regally commanding. "You're wrong," he refuted, and she looked up to see him turning away. "It's about to get worse than you can even imagine...

"The day before the eclipse, my father asked me to attend an important war meeting. Everyone was there, including General Shino, who's basically replaced Zhao as the head of of invasion force." Sokka shuddered unhappily, probably remembering the devastation Zhao had caused at the North Pole, and to him personally. Suki raised an eyebrow before slipping her hand in his wordlessly. Zuko's story continued. "Attending a war meeting at my father's right hand..." He trailed off almost dreamily before catching himself. "It was what I dreamed about and wanted for so many years." His arms crossed over his chest but he didn't turn back to look at them, and Katara knew from the way he'd talked to her before, when she was healing him, he was about to tell them a lot of things about him they wouldn't like. "My father had finally accepted me back." He shivered.

"If my first war meeting was... well, let's go with a disaster," Katara noticed his hand tighten where it grab his shirt slightly, "this one wasn't much better. General Shino was reporting that while Fire Nation troops still occupied all the main Earth Kingdom cities, like Ba Sing Se, rebellions across the land continued to exist. The Earth Kingdom is too large, and there is simply no way the Fire Nation can control all of it. These rebellions, people like your friends, and even political families like the Bei Fongs, are still doing all they can to resist. They are still a threat." Katara noticed Toph shift uncomfortably, turning a few stones over with her toes.

"Shino wanted to transfer more troops to Ba Sing Se and the Earth Kingdom Colonies. Other advisers and generals feared it would spread our troops too thin. Finally, my father turned to me. He said I had lived among the people Earth Kingdom, and wanted to know if I thought more troops would stop them."

"What did you say?" Toph asked, her voice smaller than Katara was used to hearing it, as if afraid of hearing Zuko say something that would hurt her.

The prince glanced back over his shoulder, his chin rising. "I thought about the people leading the rebellions - people like Jet, or the Kyoshi Warriors-"

"Wait!" Sokka interrupted. "You knew Jet?"

Zuko nodded. "Briefly," he said simply, before returning to his story. "But with rebel leaders like him about, I knew more troops wouldn't help. So I told my father what my uncle had told me. That the people of the Earth Kingdom are proud and strong, and that they can endure anything as long as they have hope."

Toph smiled. "That sounds like your uncle."

Zuko nodded. "Unfortunately, it was the wrong thing to say."

"Why?" Aang asked, puzzled. "It sounds like a really nice description of the Earth Kingdom."

"Yes, well, my father isn't a very 'nice' person." Aang's face fell at Zuko's dark expression. "You see, I told them that the Earth Kingdom would continue to rebel as long as they had hope." The scared eyes flickered towards Aang. "So he said, he had to destroy their hope." The boy paled.

Katara looked at her friends' frightened faces, and she interrupted in what was most definitely not proof that the actress from the Ember Island Players had represented her well. "As long as Aang is safe there is still hope-"

But Zuko cut her off with a glance.

Sokka swallowed. "What's his plan?"

"My father wants to rule the world," Zuko answered. "And he doesn't care if he has to sink it in fire and brimstone to posses it. If he can't get Aang by the comet, then he will simply destroy their faith another way." Aang's eyes finally came up to meet Zuko's, and Katara could tell that it was taking every ounce of the twelve-year-old's will power to keep looking into the smoldering golden gaze. "He plans to burn it. The entire Earth Kingdom. On the day of the comet, Ozai intends to use its power to completely destroy every inch of Earth Kingdom land, along with their hope.

"It will be the end of the world."

"But then... what will he rule?" Sokka protested.

Zuko glanced at Sokka in a way that almost asked 'do you really think _that _matter to my dad?', but instead he said, "He'll leave the main cities, Ba Sing Se, 'New Ozai', but the rest will go up in flames, and from the ashes of this fire, he intends to rise, as conqueror of the entire planet." The group were staring at Zuko with a new light in their eyes now, and Katara, through her own reeling mind, saw him shrink a little from the damage he had caused, and probably the way it reflected on him. "I wanted to speak out against this horrifying plan," he told them defensively. Then his face fell. "But I'm ashamed to say I didn't." He dropped to a rock behind him, sitting down as if afraid his legs might give way.

"Zuko-" Katara started, licking dry lips.

But the prince shook his head disdainfully, then turned his boring gaze back on Aang, and Katara got the sense she was missing something in the exchange. "My whole life I struggled to gain my father's love and acceptance. I spent seventeen years of my life trying to convince myself he wasn't all that bad, to find some other way to work with him, to make him give me his respect. But once I had it, I realized I'd lost myself getting there. I'd forgotten who I was."

It was just too much for Katara. She couldn't seem to rest on a single subject. She was afraid again, for Aang, having thought that he would be safe for a while longer, and now finding out again he must fight someone so evil she was only beginning to understand him. Another part of her brain was picturing the devastation, the utter end of the world, that would no doubt ensue if they failed at their task. She was also feeling very guilty. Waiting had been her idea, and she'd never even asked Zuko about it, or he might have told her all this. Suki and Sokka glanced at each other for support, probably imagining a world with the entire Earth Kingdoms in fire. That part, added to the broken tone Zuko had used to report most of the memory in, made Katara feel slightly light headed. "I can't believe this," she whispered, as if somehow that would make it not be real.

"I always knew the Fire Lord was a bad guy," Sokka admitted, his arm snaking around Suki's shoulders as she shook her head, "but this plan is just pure evil." Everyone was too shocked to even berate him for his cheesy line.

"What am I going to do?" Aang asks, bewildered.

Fortunately, while the rest of his friends and teachers were dropping in shock, Zuko had the answer. After all, he had never believed that there was any way to postpone, so he had been trying to prepare everyone to face things immediately for some time. Now was his chance. He stood and walked over to the depressed twelve-year-old. "I know you're scared," he sympathized firmly, "and I know you're not ready to save the world. But if you don't defeat the Fire Lord before the comet comes... there won't be a world to save any more."

Aang's eyes widened as the prince's words hit home, and Katara finally found her feet, this time to stand beside Zuko. She didn't really approve of the harsh way he was presenting things to Aang, but it was exactly that harsh manner that made Katara respond. She was a fighter, through and through, and now it was time to fight. She needed Aang to know she agreed with Zuko, in that at least. But Aang turned away angrily. "Why didn't you tell me about your dad's crazy plan sooner?" he demanded.

"I didn't think I had to," Zuko protested. "I assumed you were still gonna fight him before the comet. No one told_ me _you decided to wait!"

"Well, you want me to kill him!" Aang argued wildly. "If you're trying to convince me he's so bad, why wouldn't you tell me something like this!?"

Katara blinked. _So that's been what all the tension between them is lately. _But Zuko was already responding to the Avatar. "I don't have to tell you everything about my family," he snorted unhappily. "You should want to end his life or not based on your own judgment - not mine."

"I don't want to kill anyone!" Aang shouted.

"Well, at this point," Sokka considered, "I don't really see much of a choice."

Aang rubbed his head, grasping at it as if it were killing him, and walked further from the group. "This is bad," he muttered before dropping to his knees. "This is really, really bad!"

Katara couldn't help it. Aang needed her help, and the next thing she knew she was at his side. "Aang." He turned his head to look at her, his eyes desperately searching for answers she didn't have. But she did know one thing. "You don't have to do this alone."

In a few steps, Toph was beside her. "Yeah," the earthbender agreed heartily as Zuko, Sokka and Suki follow her. "If we all fight the Fire Lord together, we've got a shot at taking him down." She smiled a bit wickedly and glanced almost directly into Aang's eyes. "We'll be with you all the way."

"All right!" Sokka chirped in enthusiasm, feeling the need for a 'plan' in the works. "Team Avatar is back! Air!" he pointed at Aang. "Water!" he counted, as his sister turned towards him. "Earth!" Toph smirked. "Fire!" Zuko raises an eyebrow impressively questioning Sokka's dramatic descriptions. "Fan and Sword!" he finished, shoving leaves into Suki's hand, fanned out like a war-fan, and lifting a pointed fawn like a brandished weapon himself, before it drooped, wilting pathetically.

But Aang seemed encouraged by his teammate's positive antics, and stood back up determinedly. "Fighting the Fire Lord is going to be the hardest thing we've ever done do together," he states ominously, before smiling appreciatively. "But I wouldn't want to do it any other way."

"Then you're going to do it?" Zuko asked, relief clear on his face.

Aang hesitated a second, and Katara reached out to grasp his hand, in a 'you can do this!' manner. Zuko glanced at it with a frown, but Aang's chin lifted. "I'll do whatever I feel I have to when the time comes." So he wasn't committing to killing, but... "And we'll do everything in our power to beat him before the comet, together."

It was a start.

Sokka gave a whoop of agreement, and Aang's friends all laughed and rushed over to him, grabbing each other in a group hug with shouts of "Yeah!" from Toph, and "All right!" from a cheering Sokka.

After a moment of bodies rushing towards each other, they realized the group was lacking something, or rather, someone. Five very pointed looks turned back on Zuko, who was the only one abstaining from the traditional 'group cuddle'. Katara raised and eyebrow at him. "Get over here Zuko." She frowned with he didn't move. "Being part of the group also means being part of group hugs."

"Yeah, I don't really do... hugs..." His face twisted sourly around the word.

Katara's eyebrows shot towards her scalp, but before she could do anything Toph kicked her foot into the earth. A huge wedge of rock rose to hit Zuko in the back and shove the firebender towards the group, where Suki caught his arm and dragged him forward, an extremely self satisfied smile on her face. Zuko shot Toph an angry look, perhaps not feeling friendly enough with Suki to do so, but it was totally waisted on the blind bender. She slung an arm about his waist (the highest she could reach on the prince) and grinned stupidly. "That," she told him, "was for burning my feet."

Zuko tossed his hair angrily, but Katara quickly reached around Toph to put a hand on his, pretending just to be pulling the earthbender closer. Toph didn't say anything if she noticed, but Zuko certainly did. His face reddened slightly, and he sank with a bit of a grumble, allowing Suki to pull him the rest of the way into the circle. Sokka let out a cheer.

Beside them, Appa grumbled, and moments later (not a second too soon for Zuko) the group hug was being overridden by the huge fur ball. As 'Team Avatar" fell to the ground in a laughing pile, most members were squished beneath the unhappy prince who was being mauled by the bison attempting to join the love fest. An interested lemur peeked inquisitively over Appa's arrow as the group grumbled at their pets. But the message was clear. They were coming too.

By the time Katara managed to untangle herself from everyone else's limbs and scramble to her feet, Aang had already gone off in search of his clothes (as they were all wearing swimwear) promising to meet Zuko in the courtyard for a real lesson as soon as he found them, and the rest were meandering off, Sokka talking rapidly with Suki in hushed tones about 'battle strategies' and Toph fingering her space earth bracelet as if wondering what was most important to teach Aang next. Zuko was nowhere to be seen, but as Toph passed her, she said "I think Hot-Man went upstairs."

Katara glanced at the earthbender suspiciously, but Toph just shrugged at Katara's lack of apparent caring and marched off, still fingering her bracelet and kicking pebbles randomly with her bare toes.

Katara hesitated a second between finding some real clothes to change into and going after the prince, but in the end she marched up the stairs, anxious to see the damage he and Aang had done to the last livable rooms in the house. She was so not looking forward to having more cleaning, and good kisser or not, if Zuko had made a huge mess, _he _was going to be cleaning it!

Upstairs, most of the hall bore scorch marks, and all the tapestries were burned, but the fire had been completely put out. There was a hole at the end of the hallway where a window and very tiny railed balcony had been, more for potted plants than people. Now there was a Zuko sized hole in it, and a crooked, hanging railing. Katara sighed, wishing there was such a thing as woodbending that could fix it.

But it wasn't the hall that seemed to concern Zuko. The prince stood, somewhat rigidly, beside a door that was swinging sideways on its hinges. The last door on the right.

Katara sighed, and stepped up beside him. He glanced down at her briefly, and she took it as permission to observe the room that used to be his mother's. It was covered with a thick layer of dust, and a large pile of rubble and a smashed dressing table lay in the center of the floor. Sunlight streamed through the hole in the roof and the big window on the left, casting gentle lighting through the room.

Even through years of neglect, the room seemed soft, inviting. No amount of falling rubble or dust could take away the comforting aura the room produced. The curve of the warm, red wood on the bed frame, the soft looking hairbrush beneath the mirror and washbowl, even the thin, light red curtains that blew in the wind seemed to say 'come hither, and I will hold you'. It was definitely the room of a mother. Katara could tell, even though she had lost her mother so young, and the woman had never had a place like this. Kaya would have loved it. She realized that, at some point, her hand had slipped into Zuko's.

"What happened to her?" she whispered.

"I ask myself that everyday. I don't know."

Katara glanced up at him. Zuko's face looked like it had been carved of stone it was so still, so hard. But she knew what that meant. He was trying hard to keep his edge. "Do you miss her?"

The prince turned slowly to look at her, and Katara was almost surprised to find he wasn't as unmovable as stone either. But as he looked down at her, his face softened, and she felt a hand rise to cup her cheek. "Not so much now," he whispered. "I have you."

The kiss was soft and sweet, like the room, and absolutely nothing like the night before. After too short a time, he pulled back, squeezing her hand gently, and pulled the broken door shut.

"So... you burned most of your house," Katara commented, gesturing at the hallway, but Zuki just shrugged.

"So what else is new?"

Katara shot him a 'you're just lucky you didn't burn any of the bedrooms or you would sooo regret it' look, and he shrugged, apparently uneffected, before leaning on a wall.

"You haven't told Aang yet," he said instead.

"What?"

He glanced at her. "You haven't told Aang about... us." He reddened the tiniest bit at the word 'us', so little that Katara almost missed it.

"Yeah," she mumbled. "I've been meaning to talk to you about that." His face fell. "Oh, no!" she protested quickly, seeing his rejected expression. "Not that! Just about... well, what exactly 'us' is. And... about Aang."

Zuko looked away from her, towards the gaping hole through which Aang's distance voice could be heard as he conversed with Sokka about something or other. "You don't want to tell him."

"No," she admitted. "Not yet." Zuko was doing the thing again where she couldn't tell what he was thinking. So she rushed ahead to justify it, hoping for some kind of response. "It's not because I don't want to be with you, it's just because, with the comet and everything... Aang needs support right now - my support. I've already made things clear with him that he and I aren't doing... well, anything... until after the war. And whatever 'we' are is kind of on a day to day basis anyway, right?" _Was that a wince?_ She sighed. "Zuko, I need to be there for him now, as a friend. Telling him this... it would crush him, I know it."

The prince sighed, shifting against the wall, and finally nodded. "You're right," he admitted, though he didn't sound happy about it. "Of course you're right - you're _always_ right." Katara thought that somehow that wasn't as nice as it sounded. "And, it's probably for the best..."

"Look, we'll just keep it between us, until after the war. Then... well, I guess we'll see when we get there, huh?"

Zuko looked back at her. "So, you don't regret it?"

"No," Katara denied, suddenly suspicious. "Why? Do you?"

The hesitation was so short she would have missed it if she hadn't been looking for it with every scrap of her senses. "No." There was something there though, she was sure of it. "Are you sure you're okay with hiding something like this?"

Katara nodded firmly. "Yeah. It's for the best. For now. It'll give us time to figure out what 'us' is, anyway." Zuko seemed to agree with that at least. For some reason, she had thought he'd be more pushy, but he wasn't. "I'll tell you what though," she added, hoping to lighten the mood, "_you _can explain it to Sokka if it gets out."

Zuko actually blanched. "No, uh... I'd rather not."

"Oh?" she teased, bumping him with her hips. "How about my dad then?"

"As much as I respect your father, Katara I'm going to have to decline on that. But...He likes me. Kinda. I think." Katara knew Sokka and Zuko got along fine, and that there was little chance that the prince was actually scared of her brother's retaliation, so it must be more that he was worried that Sokka wouldn't forgive him.

_Boys._

"You don't want to tell my family?" She pouted, teasing him, even though she knew it was kind of wrong.

Zuko replied with a michevious smirk. "Fine. But you get to tell Azula."

Now it was Katara's turn to blanch. "Ooh... great way to get your girlfriend barbecued."

"Tell me about it."

Katara couldn't help it. She laughed. His tone was just so... dry! It needed a good chuckle. Eventually, he gave her a smile too. Just when he was leaning in to steal another kiss though, Aang's voice drifted up the stairs. "Zuko? I'm ready for practice!"

His head dropped heavily to her shoulder instead of meeting her mouth, and he sagged off the wall as if Aang were the biggest pain in the ass in the entire world. At that moment, it was kind of true. Katara smirked. "You know you love him."

Zuko rubbed his forehead wearily. "Whatever."

"Zuko?" He turned back to her as he reached the stairs. "One more question. Did you really know Jet?"

Zuko sighed. "Yeah. We met on the transport boat to Ba Sing Se while Uncle and I were mascarading as refugees." The prince turned to her, a strange concern in his eyes. "Is he really dead?"

Katara opened her mouth, then closed it. "I don't know."

"But you think so?"

She nodded.

"You should tell the Duke when we see him again."

Katara shook her head. "Smellerbee and Longshot... they weren't in the play, but... they were there with him, in the end. They'll know for sure. And it's their job to tell everyone - their right."

"They were the silent guy with the longbow and the girl that looked like a boy?" Katara gestured affirmatively, and Zuko seemed appeased. "That's good. They were his friends. I'm sure his death was a good one." He turned resolutely towards the stairs again.

Katara realized suddenly he had never asked if she had liked Jet, like her play version had. Gratitude swelled up inside her, and she put a hand on his shoulder and started to pass him to descend the steps first. "I'll come watch." He opened his mouth, but she cut him off. "Yes, and this time, I'll be quiet."

He smiled slightly, and they moved down the stairs and towards the courtyard together.

* * *

Out in the courtyard, Aang was awaiting his training anxiously. Focusing on bending, on training, always helped clear his mind, almost as much as meditation, and right now his mind was so full of thoughts he felt like it was spinning. No, like it was a whirlpool, sucking him in.

Sighing, he focused his breathing, trying not to picture the stern face he had seen in his Fire Nation school portraits every time he closed his eyes.

A light hearted giggle came from inside the house, and moments later Katara and Zuko appeared. Aang was pleased to see the two were actually getting along well now, but he couldn't shake the stupid thoughts that play had put into his head. Was Katara holding Zuko's hand a second before they stepped into the courtyard? Spirits, ever since he'd watched that thing, he was seeing more and more connections between them. He needed to get a grip.

But, he was still a young boy in the clutches of puberty too, and his words slipped out before he could quite catch them.

"Come to watch me train, Katara?" he asked.

The girl turned her attention to him, and smiled. It wasn't the normal smile she gave Aang, the bright one he'd seen for the very first time after sleeping for one hundred years, but it was for him. He tried to tell himself it was strained because she was nervous about fighting the Fire Lord too. He was, after all. Katara's smile ended as she nodded agreement to watching him train, but she pressed her finger to her lips in a sushing gesture, and seated herself on the stairs silently as Zuko strode out to meet Aang in the center of the courtyard.

The prince gestured that they should move a bit away from the dry fountain, and the two placed themselves between it and the cliff face wordlessly. A lot of training with Zuko was wordless, but Aang was getting used to it. Training with Toph was often sightless, and that was MUCH worse. Besides, he had chosen Zuko, and Toph and Katara, and he wouldn't trade a single one of his teachers for the world.

"You ready?" Zuko asked, and Aang nodded, determined to show he was serious this time. "Good, because I have something new to teach you. Something very important." Aang swallowed, a bit nervous, and nodded again."There's one technique you need to know before facing my father. How to redirect lightning."

Excitment welled up inside him, and Aang's attention increased immediately, but he held his tongue, letting Zuko continue. His 'thousand question' approach never worked on his strictest teacher. Zuko noticed his pupil's focus, and dropped into a firebending stance of his own. It was different than the normal firebending stand, more along the lines of what earthbenders called a horse stance, and it looked powerful. But Zuko's hands were now doing something even more contradictory, moving in a flowing motion, like a snake, and snapping at the end sharply, like the snake had struck. Aang watched curriously until his teacher spoke.

"If you let the energy in your own body flow," Zuko explains, demonstrating the physical motions his uncle taught him, "the lightning will follow it. You turn your opponent's energy against them."

The comment would't stay in any longer. "That's like waterbending!" Aang exclaimed, his face brightening as he joined the drill.

But Zuko didn't seem upset at all with the outburst. "Exactly," he affirmed, apparently pleased Aang was picking up on it so fast. "My uncle invented this technique himself by studying waterbenders."

"That's awesome!" Something Iroh had invented himself, combining water and fire elements... that was totally a move the Avatar wanted to learn.

They went through a few more cycles of motion, Zuko explaining the 'in, down, up and out' feeling Aang was going for, and about the sea of chi, which sounded to much like blocked chakras to Aang for comfort. But he could feel energy moving inside him, and he hoped that meant he could do it.

After he was really getting a feel for it, he risked a question. "So... have you ever redirected lightning before?"

Zuko opened his eyes to glance at the young Avatar. Then, "Once," he answered seriously. "Against my father."

Despite Zuko's dark tone (he was always dark) Aang's inquisitive nature took over, and he just _had _to know. "What did it feel like?"

Zuko's motions stopped as he remembered his own experience. "Exhilarating," he reported. "But terrifying." Aang frowned, confused. The terms seemed somewhat conflicting to him. Zuko seemed to sense his confusion, and elaborated. "You feel so powerful holding that much energy in your body, but you know if you make the wrong move... it's over."

Suddenly Aang remembered feeling something of the same when he held overwhelming power, when he'd touched lightning. It was back in Ba Sing Se, when he had just grasped control of the Avatar state consciously for the first time. It had been the same way. Exhilarating, and terrifying. But it had ended before it ever really begun, by a power he could not control. Azula's lighning. He swallowed as the finality in Zuko's words struck home.

"Heh," Aang tried to cheer the topic Zuko had made so heavy. "Well, not... over over. I mean... there's always Katara and a little spirit water, am I right?" He chuckled, and glanced over at his waterbending teacher.

But contrary to her usually hopeful attitude, Katara frowned as the two boys glance over to her on the side lines. "Actually," she reported, "I used it all up after Azula shot you."

"So no more spirit water?" Aang asked, and Katara shook her head sadly, her eyes darting between Aang and Zuko, who was frowning too. "Oh."

"That means there's no more room for mistakes," Zuko said suddenly. "I know it sounds cruel, but you and I have both led lives full of mistakes, and we've always had plenty of chances for do-overs." Zuko's tone was icy despite his burning gaze. "I don't think this will be like that."The firey eyes honed in on Aang from beneath his shaggy bangs. "Make no mistake Aang. This won't be like those times. We don't get a second chance like that anymore. You'll have to take the Fire Lord's life... before he takes yours."

Aang grimaced before glancing away. "Yeah... I'll just do that."

Zuko nodded, though it was obvious Aang's heart wasn't in his words. For a while, awkward silence strentched.

Then, "How come Azula has blue fire?"

Both boys glanced at Katara. Zuko frowned and found himself sighing. "I thought you were going to be quiet?" The question had nothing to do with the current situation!_ Women._ He would never understand them.

Aang shot him an annoyed glance. "Katara, fire comes in all colors. It comes from life, from what a firebender feels. Different emotions can create different colored flames."

Katara tilted her head. "How is that possible? I've never lit a fire and had it be any color but redish-orange."

"The intensity of it is what changes it's color," Zuko reported, as if not to be outdone by Aang. "When you light a candle, think about the very center of the flame, where it's hottest. What color is that?"

Katara's eyes widened slightly. "Blue."

"So Azula's flame is the hottest?" Aang asked.

Zuko waved his hand as if to say 'kind of'. "Azula's flame is the most intense, because she is so focused and driven. It is compacted because she is filled with intent, so it is like the very center of the flame, focused, bright, and definitely _very_ hot."

"Why are most firebender's flames orange then?" Katara asked.

"It's the most common, most natural state of fire," Zuko supplied. "It's also the easiest to power. Red fire is created from passion."

"Remember that firebender at the festival, Katara?" Aang asked. "The one where we met the Deserter?" Katara nodded. "He had all kinds of colorful fire. That's because many stage performers in the Fire Nation spend a lot of time studying the nature of fire and learning to master all it's elements so that they can show off their skill."

"You know a lot about it, Aang," Zuko said with mild surprise.

Aang glanced towards him, smiling proudly. "Kuzon taught me. His father had mastered lots of different colored fire." He frowned then. "But Kuzon said even his dad, who used so many different types of flame, could never make lighting."

"That's because lightning's not like firebending," Zuko cut in. "Not exactly. It's not about mastering a power, or learning more about it. It's about being a strong enough bender to control it. You have to be balanced in your emotions to handle lightning, so it belongs to firebenders who can control their emotions. But it's not the same as firebending. Lightning is known as the cold fire. You have to be focused. You have to separate the charges to create the lightning, and only someone who has completely mastered their emotions can do that. After it's created though, you need pure strength and bending power to direct it. That's why you and I can control it with this technique, even if we can't create it ourselves." He looked unhappy, and Aang remembered him saying once that lightning had blown up in his face hundreds of times until he'd learn simply to redirect it rather than create it.

"I'll bet you could learn it now," Aang offered. "You've changed a lot since our trip to meet the masters."

"Great," Zuko grumbled. "If I ever see my uncle again, I'll ask for another lesson."

Katara sensed the heaviness in the air, something Aang knew she never liked, and cut in with another question. "What's the hardest color fire to make?"

"White," Zuko answered, and then turned and left without another word.

Katara glanced at Aang, who shrugged, and started practicing his lightning moves again. In, down, up, and out...

_I have to beat Ozai..._


	42. Chapter 42:I Am Melon Lord

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: okay, just warning you guys, there's a big fight scene in this one. it does not sparkle. but people have to get mad at some point, right? it's the dark times that make light ones worthwhile. so hang in there! and remember, everyone gets mad sometimes... me especially... (but you should see _angry_ trombe - he's like hulk; you won't like him)  
_

**Trombe: I'm guessing this is the part where I dish out some classic hulk lines?  
**

_artsyelric: melon lord rocks, btw. may the world fall into insanity if ever dear melon lord walks it. insanity, and refreshing, juice goodness ^_~_

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 42: I Am Melon Lord  


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Zuko peered over the edge of the rocky hill he and Katara were hiding behind, his eyes narrowing in on the stick-like form of the Fire Lord. His head gleamed in the firelight, and maniacal laughter echoed around the clearing ominously. Zuko wondered if they knew what they had gotten themselves into.

Glancing to his left, he saw Sokka wave his hands in a 'you ready?' gesture, and Zuko nodded in silent agreement. The boy slid his black sword out of it's sheath and glanced at Suki. His girlfriend smiled savagely, which was oddly pretty on her full lips, and the warrior raised his voice. "Okay!" he shouted, "we're ready!"

"Muwahahaha!" High pitched laughter ricocheted off the stone walls and found each of them in their hiding places. He glanced at his assigned teammate, but Katara was not intimidated. Her face was set in fierce determination, her eyes anticipating the attack to follow. It felt right somehow, to have her standing next to him in battle. A lesser man would have settled for his girlfriend to stand on the side line or to stand behind him. The prince of Fire wouldn't have it any other way. "Come out and fight me, Avatar!"

Sokka gave the signal, and he and Suki shot out from behind their rock, charging in towards the flaming center in a wide arch to the left. Zuko began counting in his head as he ran over Sokka's plan again.

_"First, Suki and I will draw his fire," Sokka had told them, before dropping to a knee and making a mark where Ozai would be located in the dirt. He added a curved line up the left side of the battlefield to represent his and Suki's attack. "Then, Zuko and Katara charge in with some liquidy-hot offense." He put a line right up the middle towards the Fire Lord, and Zuko understood that he and Katara were positioned there to take the brunt of the Fire Lord's force. They would be the power where Suki and Sokka served as the more mobile distraction. "And while the target is distracted..." Sokka revealed the final part of his plan, proving Zuko right, and beginning to draw a third line around the right of the 'battlefield' "...Aang swoops in and... BAM!" He finished the curve, striking it right through the circle with evil eyes depicting the Fire Lord. "He delivers the final blow."_

Overall it was a good plan. It played to all of their strengths, making use of everything from Sokka and Suki's speed and... well, Sokka's innate ability to be incredibly annoying, to Zuko and Katara's opposing strengths. It would be hard for any soldiers to face a master firebender and a master waterbender working together. He and Katara could vary their attacks, counterbalance each others' strengths and weaknesses, and all in all make for a very unpredictable and powerful frontal assault. Up the center would probably be where Azula would be waiting anyway, and since Aang had to face Ozai, Zuko would have to settle for her. He wanted a piece of his sister anyway. He would _not _let that divination of a play come true.

Finally, the plan allowed Aang to approach the Fire Lord directly, whenever he saw a clear shot. By using his airbending for speed, and his friends for distractions, he could make a clear way to the Fire Lord without wasting energy battling pawns or Azula. Those fights would be the job of his teachers and friends. Aang's was the Fire Lord, and his best chance was one on one. To fell an army the size of the Fire Nation, all that was needed was to lop off the head... If he got tired out _before _reaching Ozai, there would be no contest. So it was up to his teammates to watch his back and clear his way.

Which was exactly what Sokka and Suki were doing right now, charging forward around the left side of the battlefield with war cries and no attempt at stealth. They were, of course, noticed immediately. Which was good. The enemy had taken the bait.

Zuko watched as earthen soldiers wearing tiny Fire Nation helmets seemed to pop out of the ground, angry expressions on their stony faces, only to be cut down by Sokka's unbreakable blade, or brutally kicked by his nimble girlfriend. Zuko continued counting until he reached his slow thirty, then he turned to meet Katara's eyes. She nodded once to show she had also reached the timed number.

Time was up.

It was their turn.

Flames filled Zuko's fists, and he gripped them as if they were solid matter. In the hands of a master of fire they became daggers as he charged up the stony hill, Katara at his back. At the top, the battlefield opened up beneath Zuko, and he saw more of the stone Fire Nation soldiers. Zuko didn't need to shout like Sokka had. Just the presence of the traitor prince and a devilish waterbender charging straight towards them would draw attention.

Instantly, a few turned towards him, abandoning Sokka in the face of the new threat. Water shot over Zuko's shoulders, left then right, and two of the men who had risen from the earth fell aside, sliced into three parts each like they had been attacked by razor sharp claws. Zuko didn't wait to watch the water return to Katara's octopus-arms. He vaulted off the hill and took down the last man with his fire daggers, slicing him apart with a flaming blade through his abdomen. All three crumbled to stone.

Katara shot him a pleased smile, and, though he knew better than to gloat after beating only three men, he felt the thrill of battle rush through him. Somehow, it was an even more powerful feeling now that he was fighting _with _Katara, rather than against her. He was almost anxious for the next challenge, or even Azula, to come sliding down that hill.

Suddenly, the ground trembled as if the earth god himself had awakend, and he heard Sokka's less than manly squeak. Out of the corner of his bad eye, he caught sight of his friend landing harshly on his face as his girlfriend vaulted over a flaming rock. "Watch it, Toph!" the boy shouted angrily, shaking his sword at the fiery ring where the stone soldiers were being made.

"I am not Toph!" the girl playing the part of the Fire Lord yelled back. "I am MELON LORD!" She lifted two oil coated boulders above her head with earthbending and ignited them with the torches surrounding her. Behind her was the straw-man with a watermelon for a head and angry eyes carved into it - their 'Fire Lord' training dummy. Zuko and Katara started up the hill toward her, forcing her to make a move. The girl cackled as she aimed her stones with her hands and used her feet to birth more mock firebenders. "Attack, my minions!" she commanded them. "MUWAHAHAHAHA!" Toph stamped her feet and the earthen minions charged down the hill towards those who wished to behead the Melon Lord. "Take this, Sokka!" She began to shoot more flaming rocks through their mock battle.

"She's completely lost it!" Sokka shouted as he dodged more attacks.

But Zuko grinned. Chaos was good, and chaos was exactly what Toph was causing. This would test them much better than he had expected. He launched himself into the battle with more commitment.

Seeing this, Toph let loose a huge, flaming rock in his direction. Zuko swerved to his right as it exploded into the ground he had just crossed, and saw Katara dodge around to the left of it, covering his blind side - had he told her about that yet? But he barely had time to confirm her safety, because as the rubble, smoke and dust cleared, he realized at least ten stone soldiers were rushing in to surround Katara and him. He took a small step back and felt the waterbender's smaller frame press against him. Her muscles flexed, tight with adrenaline, and there was a splashing sound as more water leaped from her hip pouch to help block any last falling flames from the burning stone beside them. Zuko batted an ember away from his face, and caught her sideways smile. "I'll take these six," she told him, and before he could grunt that that only left him four or five, she was spinning water over her head, extra arms reaching out to bind and slice at the stone soldiers.

Jumping into action a second after her, Zuko sent fire whips streaking out to either side, slicing inward to move through all five of the remaining opponents. Suddenly, the two in the center who bordered between Katara and Zuko's claimed victims erected stone shields to their right and left, which splattered Katara's water arms, and reflected a few of Zuko's flames. "Watch it!" he shouted to Katara as he pulled her sideways by her free arm to avoid the last few sparks.

"Hey!" Katara shouted, batting her sleeve with her octopus arms where it had started burning. " You watch it, Zuko!"

"Not my fault!" he called back, preoccupied with the two shielded stone soldiers. "Stay back!" He let go a big fireball, and the two slammed their stony shields together to protect themselves from his flames.

"You step back," Katara huffed as they emerged unhurt, and pushed herself back in front him, giving him a mouthful of hair on the way as she spun to toss icicles towards the openings in between the shields.

Some made it through, wedging the shield open, but the stone men managed to swing the shields closed enough to bounce a few back. Zuko gave a grunt as a sharp point of ice sailed over Katara to make a small slice on his shoulder. The rest had melted as they neared Katara, but obviously she had thought that one would miss them, only it hadn't because Zuko was taller than she had accounted for. He glared at her back as the wound trickled a tiny bit of blood down his shirt. "Katara!"

She didn't answer as she waved her hands and made the icicles wedged between the shields grow to completely enclose the stone men. As soon as they were covered in ice, it cracked into shards. The men inside them crumbled, returning to dirt. It had all taken less than two seconds. "Sorry," she breathed, turning back to look up at him. Then, "Duck!"

She pulled him aside just as another huge, fire-covered boulder streaked past them like a miniature comet, accompanied by more of Toph's crazed, Melon Lord taunting.

"The Melon Lord can't earthbend!" Zuko heard Sokka shout angrily as the prince pushed himself off the ground and charged up the hill towards Toph. "You're cheating!"

"The Dai Li can!" she bellowed back. "Now, stop whining - and DIE!"

"Zuko, no!" Katara shouted, grabbing his arm as he tried to head up the hill again towards Toph's wicked ring of fire. "Stick to the plan and leave her to Aang. Let's take out those last soldiers and open the way for him."

Zuko wanted to argue, but Katara was already running off towards the final group of remaining stone warriors, and he didn't want to abandon her. "Shall we try this teamwork thing again?" he asked as he caught up to her.

"We'll rotate - one attack a piece."

"Three seconds each."

Katara nodded, and they charged forward. Zuko stepped forward to launch twin fireballs from his fists, making the earth men break ranks to swerve the explosion. Katara used the downward slope of the hill to throw herself a few feet in front of him, hitting the ground behind herself with the octopus arms to give her extra propulsion. Zuko thought she'd been watching Azula make fire-rockets too much, but any way to counter her agility was fine with him.

Katara landed smoothly just as Zuko's fireballs past, directing a wave of water to rush over the stone men. Since they were stone and not real soldiers, however, they seemed unaffected, and her tidal wave washed out the two who were burning from Zuko's fireballs. Knowing that wouldn't be the case in a real fight, Zuko proceeded attacking, counting the three seconds before moving seamlessly into place.

As Katara finished directing her wave in a sideswipe, he pivoted around from behind her, feeling the rhythm of their timed attacks perfectly now. Without missing a step he was moving in where she left off, their backs pressed together for a heartbeat, before he was in front again, delivering a sweeping kick that sent fire at the stone mens' feet... or at least where their connection to the ground was. It broke their base and a few toppled or at least cracked.

Katara was already moving around him, spinning in a full turn after she felt him move up behind her, and lunging out past him as they finished circling each other. As she lunged, she sucked water right out of the air, sending it shooting like knife blades at the soldiers who's 'footing' he'd cracked. Where it struck, it severed them the rest of the way, and two more toppled over, leaving just a final man standing. Katara finished with her hands outstretched, bending forward over her own knee with the momentum of her lunge.

At the last second, a sizzle caught Zuko's ear, and instead of aiming at the remaining man, he changed targets in an instant. His attack was now directed at the incoming rock, and his fireblast collided with it in midair, exploding the thing into burning pebbles. Katara recovered from her lunge, and lifted her hands quickly, erecting an icy shield above their heads to protect them both from the falling debris, most of which was still flaming. Their mock opponents weren't as lucky, and a piece of Toph's fire-rock took out the last stone soldier, knocking his head completely off.

"Now, Aang!" Sokka shouted, as soon as Zuko and Katara had cleared the way, and the Avatar shot out of the far right side of the battlefield, where he had been creeping slowly closer until his way to the Melon Lord was completely clear of obstacles.

"Can we charge the cackling midget now?" Zuko pleaded dryly, and Katara nodded, returning her water shield to its place as liquid hovering around her arms.

Sokka and Suki were charging up their side of the hill too by now, and so all four warriors, and Toph (who was still cackling madly in the center of her circle of torches) had a perfectly clear view of what happened next.

Aang vaulted of a high rock, and sailed over all their heads, staff raised to strike down the Melon-Man-on-a-Stick. But somewhere between aiming and actually hitting, his face changed, and his arms slacked, their grip on the staff loosening. He landed with a 'wuff' of air directly in front of the Melon Lord, and Toph spun around to face him (even though she didn't really need to do so to 'see' what was happening).

The melon head was still sitting there, perfectly.

Aang was panting slightly, his staff mere inches from smashing the fake head to sticky juice. But instead his own head hung in defeat, and he stepped away without finishing the blow, letting the staff fall to his side. The Melon's carved mouth grinned at him, mockingly.

"What are you waiting for!" Zuko shouted as he rounded one of the oily rocks Toph hadn't yet fired, Katara behind him still. "Take him out!" What more did he have to do to make this boy act?

Aang shook his head. "I can't."

As if that just answered everything. Zuko felt his anger raise. He was _tired _of this kid's attitude. He was going to die - all of them were going to die! - if the Avatar didn't get it through his thick head that Ozai must be killed! Zuko was done playing Mr. nice guy, of appealing to Aang's better side, or trying to convince him. It was time for action, even if he had to take on the familiar role of being the antagonist. Zuko had no problem with that role.

But as he pushed back his sleeves and prepared to step around the rock and tell Aang just what was what, Sokka came charging up the hill and beat him to it. He stomped past Toph without stopping, and marched around to stand between Aang and the Melon Lord, leaning over to stick his face in the smaller boy's. "What's wrong with you?" he shouted, making Aang flinch. "If this was the real deal, you'd be shot full of lightning right now!!"

"I'm sorry," Aang apologized, his back straight and his eyes averted, "but it just didn't feel right. I didn't feel like... myself."

"Well think how we'll all feel when this happens in the real battle, and we have to watch you die!" Sokka growled. "Think how Katara will feel!" Behind Zuko, the girl let out a small squeak as Sokka's finger spun around to point at her, his gaze still locked on Aang.

Finally some steel seemed to return to the Avatar's eyes, but not for any reason Zuko wanted to hear. The boy glared at Sokka, who was still inches from his face and fuming. "I can't kill anyone, Sokka."

"It's a _MELON!"_ he shouted, his eyebrows raising all the way up to his hairline. Aang glanced downward again. A deep, rumbling growl came from Sokka's throat, and he straightened up to his full height, making Aang look suddenly small. His sword slid cleanly into his sheath as he turned away from his soft hearted friend. Then, with determined cruelty, he ran it through the Melon's head. Aang winced at the sickening crunch it made as the Melon was cleaved in two and slid from the straw body to splat on the stony earth. Momo squawked and began devouring the red, juicy fruit inside the decapitated rind. "There," Sokka stated coldly. "That's how it's done."

Zuko watched his friend, impressed and grateful for his sudden allay, even if he had now decided for absolutely positive he was NOT going to be the one to tell Sokka he'd been kissing the warrior's sister. The blue-eyed boy wiped his blade clean and slid it home with a clang that only seemed to emphasize his words. Aang looked like he might be sick, but Sokka brushed past him unconcerned. "Practice is over," he ordered. "Get your stuff. We're going home."

* * *

The group had been completely silent the whole time Katara had served diner. Even Toph hadn't cracked a joke. She kept glancing between Sokka, Aang and Zuko as if considering it, but always closed her mouth first. Sokka appeared perfectly normal, lounging about slurping up rice, meat and vegetables like he hadn't been fed in years, but there was a certain... stiff... aura about him, one which had come and gone haphazardly since watching the play and was back full force since his scuff with Aang. Whatever the reason, Toph didn't seem willing to risk it. The earthbender also seemed to consider taking a jab at Zuko, or at least Katara assumed that's why she kept glancing mischievously out of the corner of her blind eyes at him. But the prince was emitting such a heavy level of darkness that Toph would just shake her head and look away every time the idea possessed her. And Aang...

Well, right now the boy sat apart from the group, staring moodily into his plate, not a single bite of which he had touched, despite the fact that Katara had served him steamed vegetables and rice without a hint of meat. He prodded at it unhappily, and that was probably the reason Toph was looking so desperately for a joke. The boy looked pretty miserable.

Katara sighed awkwardly and shared a weary look with Suki before returning to the kitchen to store the leftovers. She was horrible at jokes, and now was no time to coddle Aang. Part of her wanted to, but the other part knew that it would be harder for him in the end. Both Zuko and Sokka were pushing him like that because he _needed _to be pushed, so like it or not, she had to let them. Comforting Aang in the traditional manner would be like undoing all their work. And she knew it wasn't easy for either of them to be so rough on him. All these thoughts rushed through her head as she went about the mundane work, noting absently there was nothing big enough to fit the leftovers in - people just hadn't eaten that much tonight! - but it all came back to the same conclusion.

It was up to her to make things better... somehow...

With that in mind, she set up towards the attic, hoping to find a larger pot for all the extra food. If she kept it in the cooking one (the only one in the kitchen big enough to store it) she wouldn't have anything to cook breakfast in. Plus, she didn't want to freeze the metal pot in ice to keep the food good and have the metal crack from the rapid transition of over-a-firepit-hot to frozen-in-ice-cold. So it was up to the attic, where she began sorting through piles in the dim twilight, all the while trying to think of something useful she could do to lighten the oppressive mood outside.

Well, she wasn't good at jokes, but there had to be someway to make everyone laugh... She considered it for a while, then she noticed a large chest laying near her that wasn't burned. She glanced at the pots she had discarded, but the box was just to tempting... She moved towards it in the dim lighting, trying to see better. Scrolls were hanging out of the chest haphazardly. It wasn't snooping if the scroll was already half out of the box, right? She fingered a few of the curious scrolls, and lifted one cautiously.

They were paintings! Most were of people she didn't know, but all wore rich, red robes, and had features very similar to Zuko's. _His family,_ she realized. Then, _maybe there's something in here that would get a laugh... without hurting Zuko, of course..._

Her hand paused over one of the dangling scrolls. A small, pudgy child with golden eyes and dark hair was sitting on the beach, reaching up towards the artist with short, baby fingers. He had a huge grin across his fat cheeks, and he was still clad in a diaper, looking small enough that he probably hadn't learned to walk yet. Only two teeth seemed to have grown in, and he was eying a sand-palace built next to him with excitement. Katara smiled at the picture, and snatched it up. _It's not _too _embarrassing, right? I'm sure he'll forgive me... Oh, whatever. It's too juicy. I gotta do it!_

Feeling more impulsive than she had since, well since kissing Zuko, she snatched up the scroll and made her way out to the courtyard, her pot hunt forgotten. "I have a surprise for everyone!" she announced as she strode into the midst of the unhappy diners.

"I knew it!" Toph chimed in, apparently incredibly happy to have _anything _to attempt to joke about in the tense environment. "You did have a secret thing with Haru!"

The joke was not well received. Katara stared at her like she was nuts, Sokka's lip curled as if disgusted, and Zuko frowned very grumpily. Only Suki even looked mildly interested, and Katara would call it confused rather than anything else really. Aang, however, completely ignored her, slumping in a depressed manner over his food.

"Ah... no," Katara answered obviously, reminding herself that the girl was only _trying _to lighten the mood. "I was looking for cooking pots in the attic, and I found... this!" She unfurled the portrait scroll with a flourish. Sokka and Suki spared it one glance, before shrugging at a fat baby they apparently didn't recognize, and returning to eating. Zuko, also, seemed unfazed by the painting. Toph, being blind, didn't even glance over, and Aang didn't seem to care. Katara huffed and waved it again, sensing the need to elaborate. "Look at baby Zuko," she cooed. "Isn't he cute?"

That got their attention. Sokka did a stupidly dramatic double take, and Suki looked like she was trying very hard not to laugh, her hand practically smashing her lips together as her face changed color. Toph scowled, put out that she couldn't see and was therefore left out of the joke, though Katara thought it only fair after that pathetic stab at Haru and her. Aang peered over quizzically, but didn't move from his spot or face them. Sokka snorted, and then chuckled, and Suki let her giggle burst forth when Zuko didn't pulverize him. She even made baby noises at the picture.

Zuko's face was pretty grim by the time their laughter died, and Katara felt a bit bad. But it had lightened the mood, so he'd forgive her, right? She rolled her eyes as she watched his stern face, hoping to head him off before he got too angry. "Oh, lighten up, Zuko," she begged him gently. "I'm just teasing."

But Zuko glanced at the picture sadly. "That's not it," he said, and she frowned. "That painting... That's not me. It's my father."

It was as if someone had just struck a very discordant note in the middle of a symphony. Sokka and Suki's laughter died out as if it had never been, replaced with shocked expressions, and Katara silently began rolling the scroll back up, wishing now that she had never decided to try and be funny. _This is why I shouldn't act impulsively! _But Aang had spun around now to face them, his eyes boring into the scroll as Katara rolled it quickly.

Suki glanced at Zuko in disbelief, apparently finally deciding on an emotion other than shock. "But he looks so sweet and innocent," she protested.

"Well, that sweet little kid grew up to be a monster." Zuko seemed unconcerned with crushing Suki's hopeful attitude. "And the worst father in the history of fathers," he added, the 'unfortunately-this-is-true' tone coming back to his voice as his gaze dropped to his boots.

"But he's still a human being," Aang's voice interrupted forcefully, the first thing he'd said since giving up back on Toph's Melon-Kingdom.

Zuko spun to face the Avatar, who's back was to them again, clearly affronted. "You're going to defend him?" the prince demanded, incredulously. "To _me?"_

"No," Aang denied, wisely in Katara's opinion. "I agree with you. Fire Lord Ozai is a horrible person, and the world would probably be better off without him-"

"Probably?!" Sokka choked, but Aang ignored him, his eyebrows dropping thoughtfully.

"-but there's gotta be another way."

"Another way!" the warrior protested, standing. "What's that supposed to mean!?"

Zuko waved his hand as Sokka jumped to his feet, and the younger boy glanced at the prince curiously. "Let me, Sokka," he said coldly. "Aang and I have been talking about this for a while." Sokka crossed his arms stubbornly, but sank back to his seat behind Zuko anyway. Katara could tell that the two boys deferred to each other randomly to avoid arguments, though neither was clear on who had more seniority. Their co-leading was just about as flawless as Katara and Zuko's bending teamwork, and considering her charred sleeve, that wasn't saying much more than that they tried. There were obviously still a lot of kinks they all needed to work out internally with their new ally. In this case, Sokka obviously felt he knew _Aang _better, but Zuko seemed to have more control of the situation, so her brother was hesitantly letting the older boy take the lead. Zuko nodded when Sokka sat, concluding their silent conversation, and turned his attention to the mini monk. "I know you don't want to kill the Fire Lord, Aang-"

"I don't _want _to kill _anyone!"_ Aang shot back.

"Let's say for a minute I'm humoring you then," Zuko considered. "What other ending do you see to this war?"

"Can't we just overthrow him?" Aang demanded. "If I beat him and make you Fire Lord-"

"He'll just rise up later to kill me instead."

"Then maybe if I challenge him to-"

"He'll kill you if you face him without the will to kill him first," Zuko spat. "There is no sympathy in that man - trust me."

"Well, what do you want!?" Aang shouted. "I'm not the plan guy! I just know I can't kill him, okay? So make up a new plan."

"That _is _the plan, Aang!" Sokka interrupted from around Zuko, responding, no doubt, since _he _was the guy who's plan was being challenged. "This is a war-"

"A war where _I'm _the good guy!" Aang protested, exasperated. "I can't go around killing people! I'm the Avatar!"

"Exactly!" Sokka argued. "It's your job!"

Zuko waved a hand to silence Sokka again, and the boy fell quiet much more reluctantly. Zuko was handling this in a manner far calmer than Sokka, so it was obvious this wasn't his first time through this with Aang. Sokka must have noticed that, because he shut his mouth shut with a clack, though he kept scowling at Aang. Zuko's eyes tore into the boy too. "I've killed people," he said coldly. "Does that make me bad?"

"You were bad," Aang explained, as if that settled it. " but that was before."

The firebender shook his head, making his dark bangs swing over his mismatched eyes. "I killed someone just a few days ago, after I joined you." Katara squeezed her eyes shut at the mention of Yan Ra, but Zuko continued on, unfazed. " And before this war is over, I will probably kill more people, possibly even my sister." Suki shifted away from Zuko uncomfortably, but Sokka didn't even flinch. Apparently this didn't surprise him in the least. Katara reminded herself he and Zuko had spent a fair bit of time together since Zuko joined their group. Aang didn't seem to have an answer though. "How about Katara and Sokka's father then?" Zuko offered when Aang didn't answer. "Blue Wolf Hakoda is a known warrior. He's killed lots of people - Fire Nation soldiers who were just following orders - my father's orders. Does that make Hakoda bad?"

"There has to be another way," Aang muttered again, avoiding the question as if he saw the trap in Zuko's reasoning.

"Like what?" Zuko growled, clearly not making progress with the boy.

"I don't know." Aang sighed, then his face lit up like a child who'd just gotten a birthday present. "Maybe we could make some big pots of glue, and then I could use glue bending to stick his arms and legs together so he can't bend anymore! Just like what the Sun Warriors do!"

"Yeah!" Zuko agreed in the cheeriest voice Katara had ever heard him use. It made her skin tingle in a way that was just unnatural, like rain from a cloudless sky, or a shadow on a day with no sun. "Then you could show him his baby pictures, and all those happy memories will make him good again!" Sokka snorted a laugh, and even Katara and Suki were having troubles hiding their mirth - a joke right then, in the middle of the tense argument, and from Zuko no less, was just too much.

"Do you really think that would work?" Aang asked, hopefully, and Katara stopped laughing.

"No!" Zuko barked harshly.

Suddenly it wasn't funny anymore.

Toph punched the prince in the arm as Aang's face fell. "This is why you let me make the jokes, Hot-Head," she growled angrily, coming to Aang's defense.

"Oh yeah," Sokka shot back on Zuko's behalf. "Because that one about Haru was off the wall funny." Toph glared at him in a way that promised pain later.

Aang started pacing around the courtyard, the nearly sunken sun casting long shadows as he walked. The falling dusk was making it hard to see, and Zuko silently reached up a hand to light a hanging candle lamp, lengthening Aang's pacing shadow even further and casting orange light on their faces. Otherwise, the prince seemed content to wait and let Aang find the words, even if it meant ignoring Sokka's impatient foot tapping. "This goes against everything I learned from the Monks," Aang tried to explain a few moments later. "Life is sacred. I can't just go around wiping out people that I don't like!"

"Sure you can," Sokka disagreed, unable to keep quiet after all that silence. "Like we just established, you're the Avatar! If it's in the name of keeping balance, I'm pretty sure the universe will forgive you. After all, it's your job to keep balance, isn't it?"

Aang was practically shaking with rage at Sokka's description of his 'job'. After Zuko's mockery, Sokka's tone was just too much. "This isn't a joke, Sokka!" he shouted, rounding on the warrior furiously. His verbal assault caused the blue-clad boy to flinch dramatically, and the Avatar's gaze shifted to include all of his friends, as if afraid they would laugh at him again too. "None of you understands the position I'm in!"

"Aang!" Katara cut in, and Aang's vicious gaze calmed slightly as he turned to her. "We do understand. I understand. It's just-"

"Just what, Katara?" Aang demanded, and it sounded like a 'not you too!'.

Katara felt her temper rise. She wasn't taking sides, but right now Aang was making it him against everyone else, and apparently she had just become part of everyone else. She wished so badly she hadn't laughed at him now, even though she hadn't meant it. "We're trying to help!" she insisted over his tantrum.

"Then when you figure out a way for me to beat the Fire Lord without taking his life, I'd love to hear it!"

"Hey!" Zuko protested, standing suddenly. "Don't yell at her!" Aang's eyes shot back to him, along with Sokka's and the prince flushed slightly. The tables were turning now. Zuko wasn't the calm overseer. He was getting angry now that Katara was involved. "Don't yell at any of us," he amended quickly, trying to cover his slip. "This isn't our fault."

"Then stop pressuring me!" The Avatar yelled, and turned angrily on his heal to stomp out.

"Aang!" Katara snapped as he passed her. "Don't walk away from this!"

But Aang ignored her, continuing his furious march into the house. She turned to follow him, but Zuko's hand on her shoulder, far more gentle than it had a right to be in the middle of a fight, stopped her. She turned back to him with mild surprise. "Let him go," Zuko suggested gently, almost completely in control of himself again. "He can't always get over things by having you there to talk him through it. He needs to grow up on his own-"

"And YOU!" Aang's voice interrupted, as the boy spun back around to face them, his face twisting with anger. "Stop telling her what to do!" He slapped Zuko's hand off Katara's shoulder. "Stop telling all of us what to do! You're not the prince here anymore; you can't order us around!"

Zuko look slightly hurt, and Sokka shot him a sideways glance. "I'm not ordering anyone-"

"Then shut up!" Aang shouted, angrier than Katara had ever seen him. Apparently all Zuko's days of nagging him about killing Ozai had finally caught up to him at once. Plus, Aang felt ganged up on, and laughed at for his glue idea, and probably jealous because of his fight with Katara. She felt a small pang of guilt at that thought. Of course, add the comet's approach, and his own failure with Melon Lord, and well... it would make anyone fly off the rocker. It was rather a miracle it hadn't happened sooner, in Katara's book. But Aang was like that. Just like how, right now, he was livid. "Stop telling me how to do my job," he glared at Sokka. "Stop telling me how to fight your father - unless you want to do it yourself!" Zuko snorted angrily, but Aang didn't break stride. "And most _especially, _stop telling Katara what to do! She doesn't have to kill anyone, and _I _don't have to kill anyone. We were doing just fine before you got here, Zuko!"

"Aang!" Katara gasped. "That's out of line!"

"Yeah," Sokka agreed, when the Avatar remained unapologetic. "Killing the Melon Lord was _my _idea. You can't just blame Zuko for everything." Katara wondered if he was claiming responsibility just to refute Aang's accusation that Zuko was becoming the boss instead of Sokka, who had always considered himself in charge, even when he wasn't.

But Zuko breathed deeply, as if forcing himself to maintain his cool. "I understand this is hard for you-"

"None of you understand!" Aang insisted.

"I do," Zuko said harshly. Then he shook his head. "But that doesn't matter right now. Sokka's right," he credited the other boy. "Katara and I-"

"Katara and you?" Aang interrupted, incredulously.

Zuko flushed, again. He had obviously been about to say something different, like 'Katara and I agree with Sokka' or anything along those lines, but when the Avatar misinterpreted it, Zuko's red face couldn't really be passed of as anger. Katara paled. "Aang, it's not like that. We're trying to do what's best for you-"

"What's best for me?" Aang repeated, his voice still angry, but somewhat small now. His eyes darted sideways to lock on Katara's, and she felt guilt well up inside her. She didn't want to hurt him. "Is that what the balcony was about, Katara? What's best for me?"

"Aang..." Katara glanced around at their audience before choosing her words. Sokka's face as gone a bit slack, as if he was no longer following the conversation. At least, Katara hoped he wasn't. "Let's talk about this when you're calmer," she suggested.

But he wasn't hearing any of it. "No!" He looked like a child in a tantrum, and Katara almost expected him to stomp his foot. He had every right to, of course, but it still would have looked a bit childish. "Let's talk about this right now!" Aang's face was starting to get red, clearly upset at the recent revelation he had been ignoring all this time.

"No, let's not," Zuko barked, finally yelling too. "Stop trying to change the subject. This is about you and what you're going to do when you face the Fire Lord in just a few days! Leave Katara out of it."

"So it is true then," Aang muttered darkly. He rounded on Katara completely now. "How long have you been hiding this?"

Katara shrank away from the accusation, but the madder Aang got at her, the more Zuko got angry in her defense, and the more hurt Aang felt. It was a downward spiral. "You're acting like a spoiled child!" Zuko roared. "You run away from everything! Stand up and face it like a man!"

"I'm a spoiled child?" Aang shouted. "_I'm _a spoiled child!? I'm not the one who wants to kill my own father!"

"My father is a monster!"

"You're his son! Why can't you just admit that maybe he doesn't deserve to die? You didn't."

"I'm nothing like that man!" Zuko protested.

"You're exactly like him!" Aang argued. Zuko looked like he'd been slapped in the face. "What did he do that's worse than what you did?"

"Aang, stop it," Katara insisted, knowing that defending Zuko would only make the Avatar madder, but seeing how flustered Zuko was getting too and feeling she had to help him, since the prince's calm was all that was keeping this conversation remotely civil.

But the twelve-year-old ignored her. "Why should I forgive you, and not him?" Aang demanded again. "What makes him so evil?"

"He wants to burn the world!" Zuko's chest was pumping as he breathed heavily.

"So, I'll stop him."

"It's not that simple!"

Aang puffed out his chest and spread his arms. "Why not?! Why can't we just fix this-"

"It's too late for that!"

"Stop taking it so personally!" Aang shouted.

"He's my father! It's already personal!" Zuko was yelling louder and louder as Aang got the upper hand, but the two were exhanging comments so fast no one else could get a word in edge wise.

"So you see my point!" Aang screamed. "How can you hate your own father so much!?"

"I just do!"

"He's your father!"

"**HE BURNED MY FACE!!!**" Zuko roared suddenly.

The shouting ended like it had struck a wall at full force.

Katara's hand flew to her mouth. Zuko was panting as if he'd just run a mile, and steam was billowing from his nose. He didn't quite seem to realize what he'd said yet. Sokka's face had gone slack, and Suki looked like she might be sick. Toph was covering her ears and banging her feet against the earth as if trying to shut them all out. She hadn't said a word the whole fight, which was odd, since Toph usually liked fights. Though Katara didn't blame her in this case.

Then Zuko's words caught up with him. He eyed the Avatar with a twisted face, and his scar seemed to jump out even more in the shadows. Katara could tell he was livid and hurt beyond measure because of Aang making him talk about his scar to them in that way, but his voice was cold and grating when he leaned towards the Avatar. "That's right, Aang. He did this to me!" Zuko pointed at his face. "When I was younger than you! And because of him... My mother..." Zuko swallowed hard and cut that sentence off harshly. He seemed to regain a more normal semblance of thought as Aang shied away, and his glare turned cold. Cold, fire-gold eyes. "Do whatever you want, Avatar Aang," he bit out instead. "Run and hide behind Katara's skirts for all I care, or freeze yourself in a block of ice- once again for a thousand years, this time! Run from your destiny! But don't you _dare _try to tell me Ozai deserves to live!"

Suddenly Toph stood up and screamed. Just screamed. The ground seemed to shake with the sound of it, and for a second Katara wondered if she actually could produce a sonic boom from her mouth. "Stop it!" she finally verbalized. "Just stop it all of you! Stop fighting now!"

Sokka grabbed Suki as a few of the steps they were sitting on crumbled. Toph flung her hands over her ears again, turned, and ran out of the courtyard without another word. Slowly, the ground stopped shaking.

Everyone's eyes went back to the Avatar and his firebending teacher. Zuko's fist trembled at his side. Suddenly, he spun and strode out of the courtyard too, heading for the beach, and disappeared into the freshly settled darkness.

Katara looked after him, desperately wanting to follow him. _His father,_ her mind kept repeating over and over. _His own father did that... When he was Aang's age..._ She looked back at the Avatar as he dropped to his knees and slumped, his head dropping into his hands. "Aang..." She started to reach out for him.

"Just go, Katara," the boy grumbled.

"But, I-"

"GO!" he yelled, looking up at her with tear-stained eyes. "Get out of here! Leave me alone."

Sokka's hand closed around Katara's arm, and she faced her older brother, worried beyond words. He nodded steadily, the calm one now. "Go, Katara," he suggested. "You'll just make things worse here. And someone should follow Zuko. I don't think it's very smart to leave him alone right now." Katara didn't notice her brother's concerned frown, her mind was spinning too much.

"But, Aang..."

Sokka stopped her with a look that said he was in charge now, but his voice was sad despite his firm eyes. "I'll take care of him. Suki went after Toph. Go."

Katara stood and wiped away tears she hadn't noticed before. She wondered dimly when she had started crying. She looked back at her best friend's broken form, and wanted to stay by his side, even if it hurt him, until he forgave her, somehow. He looked so miserable. But she also wanted to go after Zuko. She was afraid to see him again, after knowing... but he needed her too. And she was no coward. Whenever people needed her, she would help them. She raised her chin resolutely, and patted her brother's shoulder. "Tell him... Tell him I'm sorry."

Sokka smiled weakly before bending over to sit next to Aang, and Katara spared the tiny Avatar one last glance before turning and running off into the dark after Zuko.

If only she had known that it would be the last time she saw him before the comet, she would never have left.


	43. Chapter 43:Scars and Waves

Author's Note:

_artsyelric:okay, okay, i admit it, i'm a cali-girl. i wanted to go with something original-ish for a zutara (sorry if this isn't, but _I _haven't read anything like it before) so i went with writing a large portion of this chapter is in answer to the calls in reviews for some real zutara action. this is their 'happy moment' and i tried to make it as beautiful as i could, by laying in some real personal memories and experiences. i truly hope you enjoy, and that it stands out as original and lovely to you as readers.  
_

_and thanks, surprisingly, to my sister chels (the one member of my family who _doesn't _like avatar and i don't normally get along with - i know, right?) for giving me the idea, and helping me with parts of it. she was kind of my beta on this, so she gets a shout out, whether she wants it or not. thanks, sis! (can't believe i just said that...)  
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**Trombe: The readers have come through in the most remarkable way. We've surpassed our goal of 1000 reviews. I salute you, people who review. The people who don't only get a grin from me. But anyway, ugh moving is such a bitch. Not only that the start of a new semester has pretty much interfered with my schedule and my whole writing process. But hopefully this long chapter will remedy those who are craving for more.  
**

_artsyelric: oh, and a note on last chapter - aang knows about zuko katara, toph... well, we'll get to her! sokka (and therefore suki) are still in the dark, for those of you confused. aang is the one who katara won't see again until after the comet (if you forgot why or didn't watch the cannon, read this chapter and you'll know why), and... um... well, actually, there's a ton else i could say, but nothing else i really feel i have to add. you trombs?_

**Trombe: Uh...me likey bread sticks?  
**

_artsyelric: and now...  
_

_ to the dearest, most awesome fans any writers could ever have:_

_we have officially reached over 1,000 reviews, and every one of them is basically (or undeniably) positive. (thanks to those who give constructive criticism, btw, and to those who just ooze love. you're both important) every one of you are the reason we're writing. this is your story as much as ours, because we wouldn't be here without you._

_to those of you who review anonymously or don't have a way for me to reply, thank you. leave us an email, pm us, or something, and we'll answer you if you'd like. we appreciate your thoughts however you send them to us.  
_

_to those of you who read without reviewing, we hope you're enjoying the story too._

_but to those of you who always/often review, who have been with us for a while and constantly give us your thoughts, and even take time to write long, lovely, thoughtful critiques, thank you in a most heartfelt way._

_this 1,000 mark is because of each and every one of you. we love you. (well, i do. trombe, as previously established, may not have a heart. but i'm sure he still cares, heartlessly... um... somehow.)_

_end of sappy rant: now, as requested by fans, let there be zutara fluff!_

**Trombe: On the side note, since I figure we took so long to update this I figured I could give you guy a small treat. I've included a short except at the end of the story, it's our continuation story after the Avatar's Ozai war storyline. Rest assure it's going to be exciting. Restless spirits, Civil war, death, plague, drama, Sokka, etc. It's going to be big. Let me know what you think of the teaser. And if you could guess why we use Phoenix King over Fire Lord then you deserve a cookie.  
**

**Oh and another thing. As some of you have noted yes the frequent grammar or spelling mistake is here and there. What can I say? Even the best of us can't catch them all. So is anyone willing to beta for us officially? If so, just PM either one of us. Or you could continue to do what you do and correct post update, I don't mind either way.  
**

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 43: Scars and Waves  


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In all his life he had never thought that the sight of the beach would disgust him so, So strong was his anger. What had been an verbal joust of exchanging words led to a massive blow up from him and from all that was involve. Zuko would have cared more for it if he was not so livid. Hurriedly he paced across the sand, his footsteps implanting in the sand only to disappear every time the waves hugged the shore. Finding a secluded spot where the rocky remains of what had been a port, the prince of fire settled for the isolation the place offered and collapsed angrily beside the rocks.

The sun had set minutes ago and the sky was darkening already. Even then the calming atmosphere of the night's blanket did not detract him. Angry thoughts would have consumed the rest of his mind except for the clear sounding voice that echoed across the beach and penetrated him to the core.

"Zuko!"

Damn that woman.

How many times had he secretly wished the waterbender would come after him? How many times had the dream-like scenario played in his head? Yet now all he wanted for was for the voice to disappear, for her to leave him be.

"Zuko! Where are you?"

But such was not how the world worked.

He cursed under his breath. The flowing figure of Katara just swooped passed him. Maybe if he kept real still and didn't say anything, she would go away and leave him to wallow in peace.

"You'd better not be hiding from me, Zuko!"

No such luck.

He sighed. "I'm not hiding," he called out to her, and she spun towards him, her hair flying in the wind just as it had the night before, the first time she'd kissed him. She was beautiful. All the more reason he felt ashamed for his cowardly retreat. "I just don't want to talk right now."

"Oh," she said simply, and then plunked down beside him. For a second, they didn't talk, as if she understood his need to just sit quietly and think. But eventually, the words exploded forth from her, the waterbender obviously unable to contain them any longer. "Zuko, about your father...your scar...I'm so-"

"Don't be," Zuko snapped before retracting the venom in his tone. "...don't be. You shouldn't have found out that way. It wasn't supposed to be like that. I was going to tell you...eventually. "

"I..."

"I was going to when the time felt right," Zuko exhaled deeply. "but then...that happened." He was not trying to justify his actions. All that was said was in the heat of the moment. But it did not mean he did not feel guilty about it.

"I'm so sorry..."

Katara reached out to press her cool fingers to his scar, gently, just like she had back in Ba Sing Se. His own hands moved up to grasp hers tightly as if unsure of the nature of their caress before he found himself holding them against his cheek. Cool. Like a refreshing swim into the blue depths of the ocean. Her hands contrasted greatly with the heating throbbing of his body.

"Zuko..."

"Could...could we just not talk for a bit? I just need to..." From the way Katara did not pull her hand away he did not need to finish his sentence. Her hands continued to stroke his face, his cheek, his scar. All of it, her touch caressed.

The two stayed obedient to the silence, only the calming sound of the waves breaking into the shore remained.

" No one..._no one_ has actually touched this scar," Zuko broke the silence. "I just want you to know that, Katara."

The Water Tribe girl said nothing. Cupping his face with her delicate hands she pulled him close to hers, eyes meeting eyes. " I know." she whispered.

"So... your mother..."

Zuko grunted. After seeing her bedroom, and then his slip in the fight, he had known it was coming. "She disappeared. The night before father took the throne from Iroh. Azula said..." He licked his lips. " The night before she vanished Azula told me father was going to kill me. I thought it was another one of her sick jokes. A cruel jest. I wish it would have been so. She said it was to_ teach_ my father a lesson in humility. _Teach_. Like it was all some sort of insane game. " the brooding young man kept his tone dark and humorless. "Azula said the orders were from my Grandfather Azulon himself. "

"It should have been a lie, but... my mother came to visit me that night. She was crying and telling me she..." He swallowed. "...Telling me she loved me. The next morning she was gone. And now I know why."

Katara wrapped her arm around his and found his touch to be cold and clamy, so different from the Zuko she had always known. "I'm sorry."

"There's more."

After a shuddering breath that seemed to help restore control to him again, somehow, he continued. "I confronted Father about it during the eclipse," Zuko revealed. "He knows more than he's letting on, I'm sure of it." He shook his head as if dismissing the thought. "I think Father has always blamed me for losing her though. He would have rather killed me and kept Mother. She ...calmed him. He actually liked her. And he could have always had a better son. I was a constant disappointment." He could feel Katara pulling him closer to her, as if to somehow refute that thought. "No, I was," Zuko confirmed. "I tried so hard, but Azula was always better. I was spoiled, and a cry baby. But all that changed when I was twelve."

"I went to a war meeting. I wasn't supposed to be allowed in, but... When I said before that I had dreamed for years of pleasing my father, of sitting by his side during a war council, I wasn't lying. I convinced Uncle to let me in. But I spoke out of turn. A young boy in a war council. You could have just imagined the look on those generals' faces."

His face darkened. "You remember that boy I told you about? The one Azula liked who died in the war?"

"Yes," Katara whispered sadly.

"It wasn't even an honorable death," Zuko agreed. "Died as a new recruit. This was right after that, and they wanted to do it again. The generals said the battle he had died in had been such a success, and since they had enough men, they wanted to do it again. To reuse the same strategy. To sacrifice more of their own untrained men.

"So I spoke out. I accused the general, and he challenged me. He demanded an Agni Kai. I thought of Azula's friend, who had died, and all the lives I could save - my people's lives! - and I accepted. I was not afraid. _Never_ afraid." The young prince almost chuckled as he spoke those words.

"I was young and stupid." Zuko hadn't realized how tightly he'd been curling his fist until Katara's long, slim fingers pried it open and forced their way into his grasp. His palm stung from having his nails digging into it. He ignored it. "You see, there was a catch. There's _always _a catch. It wasn't the general who I had insulted, and therefore he wasn't the one I had to challenge. The Agni Kai I had unwittingly agreed to was against my father himself."

Katara made a shushing noise, not to make him be quiet, but to calm him, and began needing his hand in her own. Keeping him there with her, and not falling back into the memory. "I was just like Aang," he said. "I didn't know how to fight some one for real, someone with the intent to kill me. And this was my father, my lord liege. I couldn't fight him! I was of his own blood! So... I broke. I just knelt down and cried, hoping he'd spare me. He was the Fire Lord, after all, and my father. He should have been able to do anything!

"But he didn't. I shamed him. He had a son who'd picked a fight, but only to run from it. He had lost my mother to spare me, the useless bawling wreck on the dueling floor. He told me what a waste I was, and... and then this..." Zuko had to swallow again before he could continue. He hadn't realized how dry his mouth had gotten. When he could form words again, he pressed forward. "I was in pain for days, weeks... Maybe... I don't know how long, but... Uncle stayed by my side the whole time. And when I was conscious again, my sister came. Father wouldn't even see me himself to deliver the news. I had been banished. I was to leave the Fire Nation as soon a I could walk, and never return until I found the long lost Avatar. It was a fool's quest - a slow death sentence."

"But you did it," Katara told him. "You did the impossible."

"Actually," Zuko recalled, finding himself able to smile slightly at her praise, "I seem to remember that it was _you _who found him."

She flushed. "Well, anyway... I can see why the choice in Ba Sing Se was so hard for you now."

"That was no excuse-"

"No," she agreed. "That wasn't. But that is the past." She leaned up and kissed him gently. "This is the present."

Zuko groaned. "After all that, I lost my temper again. I hurt him-"

"Aang..." Now it was Katara's turn to swallow. "This is hard on him, but he's a tough kid. He'll pull through. And we'll be here for him when he does."

"He always stuck up for me," Zuko said, his voice a bit raspy. "From the first day, to the morning I arrived at the Air Temple to beg forgiveness not even you would grant. He was my friend the entire time."

"And he still is," Katara insisted. "You'll see. Toph and I have had fights probably just as bad as that, and we got over it. Things will turn out all right."

Zuko turned to look down at her. "...Tell me. Am I...like my father?"

"What?"

"Back there when we were arguing. Aang said something that I will never forget. Be honest with me Katara, _am I like my father_?"

"Zuko!" she gasped. "No. You listen to me, you are _nothing_ like your father. _Nothing_. Even when you betrayed us... when Aang was shot... You were doing that because you thought it was the right thing to do, to restore your honor. Your father has always thought only of himself. You have, for as long as I have known you, always thought of others before yourself." Zuko opened his mouth to protest. "I'm not talking about small comforts," she insisted. "I'm talking about this right now. What you're doing. Or about how you risked your own freedom to rescue my father. Or how you took my beatings so that I could speak out."

Zuko shook his head. "You're wrong about me," he denied. "I'm a very selfish person. You can ask my uncle."

"And you're wrong about me," she said. "I am not a perfect girl, who's always good. I don't have all the answers, and I can act very wickedly and spitefully sometimes too."

"I know." He smiled.

"And I know you're both spoiled and selfless."

Zuko shook his head at her contradiction. "I guess we'll have to agree to disagree then."

She grinned in a stubborn, mysterious manner that said she wasn't budging an inch on her new opinion, before answering. "Yes, I guess we will."

Zuko didn't really understand how disagreeing with the waterbender could make him love her even more, but somehow it did. Opposites must really attract after all. Even when he fought with her, it just made him want her more. She was just so infuriatingly appealing when she was angry, beautiful in such a deadly way, like the sea itself. He understood now why so many of his sailors referred to the ocean as a woman.

Then his hand brushed over her sleeve, and he felt the bits of tattered sleeve that had burned off during their mock fight with the Melon Lord. He fingered it apologetically and glanced down. Her gaze followed his, and she caught sight of the singed fabric. "Uh, I'll buy you another one?" Zuko offered, and she could only laugh.

"Never mind that," she said quickly. "There are plenty more almost exactly like it in Azula's closet, if I'm too lazy to mend it myself. I can sew, you know."

"I'm sorry," he said instead. "Since you've healed my hand, well... My firebending's actually been stronger than I'm used to, especially after visiting the Masters. Sometimes it goes a little wilder than I mean it to be."

"Yeah, well," Katara shrugged, and ran her hand over his shoulder, fingering the tear in his shirt where her ricocheting icicle had gotten him. "I guess we're even."

The two were on their way back to the house only to be greeted by the sound of a door slamming, hard enough to shake the building to its half burned foundations, and then some muffled shouting. Katara couldn't even tell if it was a boy's voice or a girl's. Zuko glanced at the building darkly, his golden eyes gleaming in that animal like away again, and Katara shuddered. "Come on," she said, standing and pulling the prince after her.

"Why?" he asked as she tugged on his arm. "Where are we going?"

"Just, come on." He allowed himself to be brought to his feet, and trailed after Katara as she marched further from the house and headed towards the beach. Small waves were crashing on the shore, but the cove was generally peaceful tonight, reflecting the moon as it waned. Around the corner, on the far edge of the beach, a few large waves crashed around the reef, but they were all white water by the time they reached this shore, and the most of the water in front of them was calm for miles. Zuko knew this cove was also safe from most prying eyes since it was the Fire Lord's private beach, so he let her pull him onward. "I'm sick of all this doom and gloom," Katara announced as she started peeling off her clothes. "What we need is some fun!"

Zuko knew his own face must have gone scarlet at what it seemed like Katara was implying, so he wasn't surprised when his next words came out as a bit of a gasp. "Katara! What are you doing?"

"Taking you ice-surfing, of course!" she stated, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Now take off your shirt."

"Oh." He wasn't sure if he was relieved or disappointed. _Disappointed, definitely... I think. _For some reason, he distinctly remembered Sokka smashing that pitch black sword ruthlessly through the Melon Lord, and considered revising his _'I think'_. But a moment later he started peeling off his shirt despite the memory, watching Katara out of the corner of his eye as she stripped down to her white undergarments, the ones she used to swim in. Then her words sunk home. "Wait, what?"

"Just come on!" she repeated, once again grabbing his arm and dragging him forward towards the surf.

Zuko kicked his shoes off before she managed to drag him into the water, feeling the cold waves lapping against his ankles. But the night was warm, and the water felt pleasant. It was Katara he wasn't sure about. She was waving her hands to summon an icy wedge big enough for both of them. "It's not exactly like we do it at home," she said, as if that explained everything. "Normally, we have a sail, but since I don't have any at the moment, I'm just going to have to improvise and combine the swampbender style bending to Southern Ice-Surfing, and viola! Ice-surfing without a sail!"

"Katara, I have no idea what you just said."

She smiled as if he'd made a joke, and stepped onto the board, ice swarming up around her front foot to hold her fast to the board. "Trust me. It'll be just like when we rode that ice raft out of the Information Tower the other day. Only faster."

"Yeah, because hanging on for dear life while I freeze my ass off in the middle of a tropical storm is completely my idea of a joy ride," Zuko grumbled. But Katara just smiled at him again and held out her hand expectantly. For some crazy reason Zuko could not understand, he caved. He reached out a hand to take hers, and the waterbender pulled him up behind her. A moment later, he felt his own feet freeze in place behind hers. "I'm going to regret this, aren't I?" he asked and she laughed.

"I certainly hope not! But... I've never done it with two..." She puzzled for a second, then shrugged. "Guess I can put the handholds from the sail on here." She swirled her fingers over the board, and it sprung a pole in the center. An ice pole. It tilted out at a precarious looking angle, and Katara had to lean forward to grab it when two handles split out from it, at the perfect height for the waterbender who had made them. Naturally. She gripped them confidently, and spared him an excited grin. "Hold on."

"To what?"

But before he could get an answer, she kicked off the sand with her free foot, and he threw his arms around her waist and hung on. Katara waved one hand in circles, propelling the ice-board through the breakers and out into the cove, using her free foot to part waves or make turns. The board rocked a bit, and Katara apologized, saying she had to adjust for his weight. Zuko squeezed his eyes shut as they tilted, often slammed by waves that had appeared so small and innocent from shore. It seemed like a ridiculously dangerous thing to be doing, tempting the sea so! But soon they were past the breakers, and Katara was laughing. There was wind in his face, and she wiggled in his arms to get his attention. "Look, Zuko!"

He did.

The sea stretched out before them, starlight dancing across it. Water raced against his feet as the board skimmed over it. Katara kicked out her back foot, and the little craft spun to the side, catching some of the force of a swell and propelling them along without her arm circling. She turned the board sideways to the swell and steered them through a bunch of nesting swan-gulls. The birds let out honking protests as they took to the air in a flurry of feathered white, not unlike the pillow he had smashed the day before. Feathers reigned around them, and the wave began to crest behind them. Katara spun her foot again, and they scaled it, shooting easily over the top and slipping down the rounded back of the crest as Katara began circling her arm again to propel them forward again.

Zuko realized he was smiling now. Katara chased a few more of the swan-gulls, and laughed out loud when she saw a butterfly-ray leap out of the water and flutter its speckled wings for a moment, almost seeming to fly in the moonlight before dropping back beneath the waves. "What was it?"

"Butterfly-rays," Zuko explained, having seen them a few times on vacation here himself, though he had never been this close before. "During mating season," he projected his voice over the waves and rushing wind, "the males will leap out of the water to show off their wings, hoping to impress a female. There are tons if you come on the right week, all different colors too." He remembered watching them with his mother one summer, and the way she laughed as she told him about the strange sea creatures who craved to fly.

"They sound beautiful," Katara called back.

Zuko nudged her, feeling a bit reckless now that he was actually out here and not dying. "I thought you said this thing could go fast."

Her laughter whipped through the wind like her hair. "Oh, it can! But you're going to have to work with me, Zuko. Balance on the board yourself a bit. It's easy when it's moving. If you lean forward, you slow it down when the water's flat. Back, and we'll pick up speed. It's the opposite in a wave. But don't lean too far forward, or we'll nose-dive! You lean like this in the turns." She showed him how to move with her as she pulled the ice-board in different directions across the cove.

"I think I've got it," Zuko reported hopefully as he followed her body movements.

Actually, he didn't really understand all the specifics, and he'd had no practice on waves, but he was holding Katara close, and he found when he mimicked her movements, the board sped up or righted itself. The scariest was leaning into turns. It felt like the exact opposite thing to do. He wanted to lean _out _of them, to keep the ice-surfer from capsizing, but their speed kept them right-side up until Katara pulled out of the turn, so Zuko just forced himself to do it.

"All right," Katara called back. "Let's go!"

Her free arm spun faster, and the next thing Zuko knew, the ice-board gave a jolt, tugging on his feet in such a way he was glad for the first time (besides turns) that he was actually stuck to it. Then they were off. They were shooting across the rippling water at breakneck speed. If they had been doing this on land, Zuko might have been a little worried. But knowing that falling would do nothing more than make a splash - a very big one, granted, but still, not that painful in the long run - made it fun. Wind whipped Zuko's bangs off his face and made his eyes burn. Katara's taught body flexed beneath him, telling him when to turn and how to lean. The ice-board shot trails of water when they turned, and Katara splashed a pelican-osprey with one. The bird gave an offended cry, a predatory screech echoing from its gaping beak, and shot up into the air to circle around them, before swooping back to nest somewhere devoid of rambunctious teenagers on a bird hunting rampage.

But Katara continued swerving to create the spray, even after the bird was gone, and even stopped propelling them for a few moments to trail her hand in the rainbow-colored drops. "Zuko!" she called playfully.

"What?" he asked.

"Lean back!"

"What?!"

"Lean. Back."

Trusting her with what he felt was his very life, he took a deep breath (least he hit the water) and let his grip slip as far as possible around her hips. He trusted his ice-bound feet to keep him planted on the board, and leaned his head back as far as it would go. Katara tilted the ice-board the opposite way, then brought it back as much as she could while maintaining balance.

Zuko blinked. It was incredible. The wind in his face, the sea spraying beneath him, the way they rushed over the water so lightly. He let go of Katara with his front hand, keeping the second grasped firmly on her hips, and let his left hand trail in the ocean they were speeding over. Katara let out a whoop, and then a laugh, and when she did it again, Zuko tentatively joined in. It was such a rush. Soon they were screaming to the moon, racing over the waves, and all his cares seemed to have been left so far behind he couldn't even remember them. All there was in his world was the dripping waterbender in his arms, the taste of salt in his mouth, and the sense of endless rushing with no where to be.

"Fish!" Katara called, and Zuko glanced beneath where his fingers trailed to see a school of sliver-pike swimming beneath him, their long, thin bodies rippling in the water as they kept pace with the board. Then his eyes widened as he caught sight of what they were fleeing from. "Not just fish!" he called, nodding, and Katara glanced over his shoulder. "Tiger-shark!"

The hairy, striped shark opened its maw as it pursued its dinner, and Katara let him watch it for a second before veering away. "Let's ride some waves!"

They headed back towards the beach, coming in by way of the big waves deeper out at the reef. Katara slowed their speed as they got close to one, matching pace with a large crest. Zuko's eyes widened as it swelled up behind them, growing more and more gigantic with each second, as if it were a monster that would swallow them up. "Um... Katara..."

"Remember, lean forward when I do, but don't nose dive!"

"Katara- WAIT!"

But there was no making the sea wait. The wave swept them up, and Zuko felt his stomach drop and his limbs grow heavy as the weightlessness possessed him. Katara gave a 'whooooaaa!' and then gravity seemed to restore itself. The board stopped falling out from beneath them the exact moment Zuko had been afraid they would tip over its front (he was definitely NOT leaning forward) and then they were skimming across the water, suspended between a state of falling and being propelled. The wave was lifting them up, and they were dropping down it; it was pushing them forward, and the water in front of it was rushing them back. It was a complete state of absolute insanity, incredibly addicting insanity.

Zuko nearly bit his tongue though when he looked back to see the crest of the wave. It was chasing them, and it was winning. "Katara!"

She glanced back. "You want to ride the barrel?"

"I- What?"

"I heard some people here calling it that," she insisted. "We don't get many waves like this in the South Pole, but I've been wanting to try it."

Zuko didn't know what exactly 'it' was, but he certainly didn't want to try anything Katara hadn't done already. However, before he could think of a way to frame the protest without sounding like a wimp (which he was NOT) Katara had let the wave catch them. They both gave terrified, enthralled shouts as the top of the wave bent over them, and suddenly they were inside a complete circle of water.

It was like a whirlwind, all around them, but completely liquid. Water was rushing in every direction, sparkling, falling like slow motion. They were rushing forward in perfect timing with the wave so that it seemed as if nothing was moving, although everything was. Only the pulsing feeling of the board rocking through the water and the sense of rushing wind said they were still moving forward. The sea's power thundered on every side of them, mere inches away, smashing, tugging, roaring, but here in the center they were somehow untouchable. It felt like they were being sucked into a vacuum.

Then Katara gave another wild whoop, circled her arms again, and they shot forward, out of the barrel. She caught her bearings as the world returned to view, then twisted the board beneath their feet, spinning them so that they faced shore instead of down the wave. The tube collapsed behind them, and white foam caught them and drove them towards shore.

Katara rode the wave as far as it would take them, before bending them the rest of the way to the shallows, and as the board started to bump into the sand, Zuko felt the ice melt from his feet, and he stumbled gratefully through the waves until he could feel sand beneath his toes again.

He collapsed on the beach, arms widespread, his chest thundering and his heart pounding. Katara grinned as him as she kicked her board up, catching it in her grasp like a pro. She was panting too, and her face was red from wind and excitement, her hair a tangle. She looked wild, as wild as any of the waterbending stories he'd ever heard, and her eyes gleamed in the moonlight, bluer than the sea. "Still planning on regretting it?" she asked breathlessly.

In answer, Zuko shoved himself off the sand and kissed her, with the same intensity he'd had the first night (was it really only yesterday?) but this time with a more wild element to it, a feeling he lost himself too. He didn't think of Mai, rotting in a prison cell, or Aang, suffering under the weight of the world, or his father, scheming even now about the terrible things he had planned for Zuko and his friends. Somehow that had all been left behind, as if they had raced so fast on the board it couldn't keep up. She had planned it that way, he knew it, and he didn't care. Right now, he loved her, and she loved him, and for one night, nothing else mattered.

The ice board melted back into the sea, unnoticed.

Zuko wondered if praying would stop the coming dawn of morning?

* * *

Back at the beach house, Aang sagged in his room. Suki had brought him up a tray of food; fresh fruits and warm bread rolls. Aang knew his friends were worried he'd skipped dinner, but he really didn't feel like eating. Still. He was a vegetarian for a reason, and seeing Momo lick out Melon Lord's head wasn't sitting to well with his stomach just yet. He glared at the fruit for good measure. It didn't respond, just continued to gleam in the flickering candlelight.

Aang sighed and folded his feet back up beneath him, wishing he could return to meditation. It had calmed him, but his mind was still filled with too many thoughts. Ozai. Zuko's scar. The Melon Lord. The Earth Kingdom. Katara.

The Avatar knew he had been out of line. He would like to say he never let his anger get the best of him, that he had learned well from his Monk teachers, and that when he shared their wisdom with other, it was more than just words. It was his way of life.

But he'd been doing a pretty poor job at it of late. He had been in a rage very often over the last year - when he found out that Gyatso and the rest had died, when the sand benders stole Appa, when that earthbending general had sunk Katara into the ground, and again now. And those were just the times he'd lost control of his temper completely! He'd been horribly mad too many other times to count. He sighed regretfully.

He'd have to apologize in the morning. It had all been stupid. He knew Zuko and Sokka were just trying to help. It wasn't their fault that they hadn't been raised like he had and therefore were having trouble understand his reservations. Even he had to admit, killing Ozai seemed logical in many ways... But it also felt so wrong. It wasn't just that Aang was scared of killing someone, or that he didn't think Ozai deserved it, it was that he couldn't justify it, no matter what Zuko said. There was just a piece of his conscious, a piece that spoke in the voice of Monk Gyatso and all his long lost family, that wouldn't. He felt conflict within himself, worse than when he had tried to open his chakra and attain the Avatar State. He felt like there was a two-headed viper-rat inside him, and it was eating him alive.

Sighing, he buried his head in his folded knees and groaned. The worst part was Katara. He had been too slow, and he knew it now. He had known it even before he'd seen her and Zuko sailing around the cove on Katara's ice-board. Somehow, Aang had messed it all up. She cared about him - she'd kissed him! Or, he'd kissed her... But he had her, and he let her go. He didn't know exactly when it had happened, or what he would have done differently the next time around, but he had known since the play that he had been too slow.

She'd said she didn't want to be pushed. She meant the opposite. Sokka said girls often did. Katara had wanted a relationship Aang wasn't ready for yet, one he had only dreamed of and never dared to act on. Zuko had acted. He had no proof, but he was sure of it, and it royally pissed him off. At Zuko, some, and more so at himself. He knew the two of them were down there right now, hidden beneath all those trees, doing the spirits alone knew what, but he didn't need to see. He didn't want to. Maybe she hadn't told him yet, but Katara was making her choice, right now. It was only a matter of time until she told him, confronted him, made it official. _That's what all that 'we're in the middle of a war' talk was about, _Aang thought miserably. _She just didn't want to tell me how she _really _felt when I might die in the next few days. If I'm alive after that, she'll break my heart then. How kind, to let me die happy._

Aang shook his head. He could almost hear Gyatso chastising him. _The heart is a tricky thing, Aang. Do not judge it too fast. And remember, young airbender, negative thoughts only bring you down. Cast them aside, and do not dwell on them. I have found that when I do this, most things tend to work themselves out without my fretting. _The Avatar pushed the negative thoughts away, as far as he could, and looked out over the beautiful night, tasted the salty sea air, and wondered again what he was to do about the evil Lord who's bedroom he now sat in.

Just then, there was a chattering sound, and two tufted ears poked over the landing. Aang smiled at his pet as the lemur coasted to a stop on his balcony, dropping down and crawling over to him. It nuzzled his hand, and eyed his food. When Aang made no protest, he snatched up a grape. "Hey Momo," the boy greeted the fuzzball. Momo stopped munching to glance up at his master, and Aang somehow felt like the lemur was concerned. "I don't suppose you know what I should do?" he asked it.

Momo chattered at him again, but unlike his wild dreams on the island they had launched the disastrous invasion from, the lemur did not speak, or give him any strange advice. Nor did he pull a sword and attempt to attack Appa.

Aang heaved another great sigh as the lemur popped a second grape in its mouth and chewed quickly. "I didn't think so."

He glanced out over the sea again. "Well, I wish _someone _would tell me!" he spoke loudly, though he expected no answer.

The sea continued to sparkle, the trees to sway, and the stars to twinkle. No answer came.

Momo made a small hissing sound as he watched the scenery, and Aang absently patted its head between the ears, causing Momo to climb up on his lap. The beast circled once, before curling up and starting to sleep.

"Yeah," Aang agreed. "You're right. Sleep's probably a good idea."

He scooped up the lemur and set him down on the floor, laying out next to him on the balcony. Aang had never really been one for beds. He patted the lemur who raised his head sleepily, and whispered, "goodnight." The lemur squawked and Aang pretended it was an answer, before drifting off to sleep as well.

Little did he know, his dreams would be much more wild than a sword wielding Momo attacking an armor-clad, talking Appa in a stadium of koala-sheep.

* * *

"Good mornin' sleepers! Up and at 'em! No excuses - an no biting, Toph! Sun's up, sky's clear, and we got a big day ahead of us! Time to start crackin'!"

Katara groaned and rolled over into her pillow. When she opened her eyes, Suki was staring at her with a sleepy expression. She smiled blearily at her boyfriend's rude awakening. "What the hell is he ranting about?" Katara demanded, not as pleased as Suki, and tried to burrow further into her pillow to drown out the annoying voice outside.

"He wants us to be saddled up and ready to fly by noon," Suki revealed. Then she blinked, as if still coming awake herself. "Oh! Didn't anyone tell you when you got back? We're flying out today. If we only have until the comet to face Ozai, Sokka says we need to get a move on."

"Must've missed that," Katara grumbled.

Suki raised an eyebrow. "When _did _you get back?" she asked.

Katara opened her mouth to answer (probably scathingly since it was far too early in her opinion to think of any excuses the warrior maiden would believe and she still wasn't sure if she and Zuko were going public now that Aang seemed to know... what a mess!) but before she could, there was a crashing sound from the room next door, and Toph screamed. "GET OUT, SOKKA!"

Suki shook her head, her full lips pressed together primly. "Sokka's figured out that if he stays on the wood parts of the house, Toph can't sense him coming. What he hasn't realized is that she can still _hear _him just fine."

There was another screech from next door, a thump, and then a door slamming. "Toph! Toph Be Fong, you better not go back to sleep!" Sokka shouted, banging on the door. There was a wooden thud as if Toph had thrown something heavy at the door. "You have to come out _some _time!"

But Sokka's pleas went unanswered, and eventually, grumbling, he poked his head in the girl's room. "You guys are getting ready, aren't you?"

Katara started to snap at him that there was no WAY she could have slept through his ruckus, but before she could, Suki cut in first, making her close her mouth without speaking - again. "We're moving, babe. Now shut the door so we can get dressed."

Sokka's eyes slid to Katara. "How's Zuko? Can I wake him?"

"No need." The prince's deep voice cut across Sokka's and Katara suddenly felt the urge to join Suki and tug the covers up to her chest, even though Zuko wasn't in the doorway yet. "It's dawn. I'm up. We moving out?"

"Yeah," Sokka agreed, turning to face him. "As soon as the 'ladies' get a move on." He pulled the door shut, and Katara could hear their now dampened voices discussing plans, Aang, and Toph, the later of which, apparently, had yet to come out of her room.

"Did you talk to Toph last night?" Katara asked Suki as the girl slid out of bed, leaving a cold spot where she had been.

"I tried." Suki began pulling clothes over her head, and her voice was temporarily muffled. "...didn't want... talk... said... I wasn't..." Her head popped out and she grabbed a breath. "Ah! She said she didn't want to talk to me, like I wasn't good enough or something. I think she wanted one of you and was kind of ticked Zuko and Aang got you guys, and she got me." Suki glanced away. "Not even a real one of you guys."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Katara demanded, throwing off the sheets and joining her friend.

"Well, I'm not, really," Suki commented. "I mean, my opinion doesn't really count. You know. I can't bend, and I'm not like Sokka, the leader and all..."

"He told you he's the leader!?" Katara demanded.

"No, I just figured he does most of the leading by watching. Aang makes the final decisions, and you look out for everyone, but Sokka is the one who plans everything, decides where to move, when to go, how to split up. So, he's like the leader. I'm not really... anything but an extra body." Katara crossed her arms angrily. "Not that I mind!" Suki cut her off, waving her hands. "I like everybody here, and I'm honored just to have a chance to fight with you guys. If I can do anything to help, just tell me! I love Sokka, and you guys, and I want to do my best for my country, and the Avatar."

"Suki," Katara stopped her friend. "You may not have been with us the whole way, but you're still a part of this group, just as much as anyone, and Toph's just going to have to-"

"Katara, it's okay," Suki insisted, and when Katara stopped dressing to raise an eyebrow Suki elaborated. "Just... give her time, all right? I think there's... a reason Toph doesn't like me. A reason that I'm pretty sure will work itself out in time."

Katara eyed her friend, before deciding to agree. Suki was a strong, capable woman who had lead lots of girls like herself before, girls with strong spirits, like Toph. Whatever it was that was between her and Toph, it hadn't been an issue before, and Katara trusted Suki to keep it that way. After all, Katara knew from personal experience, Toph could sometimes be incredibly stubborn and hard headed, even nearly impossible to get along with. "Suki, you're like a sister to me," Katara told her, "so I trust you. But I hope that in the time it takes Toph to come around, you'll realize we need you with us as well."

Suki smiled genuinely. "Thanks. You're the most important person I could have heard that from."

Katara nodded, understanding what it was like to worry that family wouldn't like your choice in boyfriends - Oops! She meant that your boyfriend's family wouldn't like you. Same thing really. Right?

"Hey!" Sokka's voice came as he banged on the door. "Hurry up! You two should be packing by now!"

"Go bother Aang!" Katara shouted, noticing that the Avatar was the only person Sokka hadn't been plaguing yet this morning.

"Can't," Sokka called back. "No answer. Think he went out. But he knows we're leaving, so I'm sure he'll be back to help out any minute."

Katara pulled open the door and her brother almost stumbled through it. "All right, already," she sniffed at him. "We're dressed. What do you need help with?"

When Sokka actually directed her to start packing up the kitchen and food supplies while Suki cleaned out their room (taking all of Azula's weapons for good measure, the dunderhead warriors) instead of just screaming something stupid like 'Everything!' to answer her question in what would be such a Sokka way of doing things, Katara began to think Suki might have a point. Months ago, when Sokka had argued that he was the leader, Katara had found it stupid. _She _lead just as much as anyone, and Aang WAS the Avatar. But now she saw it, how much Sokka had grown, how he took charge, and they all just followed naturally. When had it happened? Surely it must have been before the invasion...

Katara was still puzzling over it as she stumbled downstairs to pack up the cooking supplies and food stuffs. Sokka had even taken control the night before, after the fight. He'd been the one to handle Aang, despite how he'd started the whole thing by yelling at him for messing up the Melon Lord mock battle. And he'd been looking after Toph since before that... How had she underestimated her brother so much?

_Probably because he's a goofy nitwit,_ she concluded, packing up the last of the kitchen's goods.

But still, she was glad he'd stepped up the night before. She knew she couldn't have dealt with Aang well then. Hopefully, she'd be better now that everything had cooled down a bit. But, secretly, she was glad Aang was out this morning. She wasn't sure she could face him yet, after last night... Maybe that was why he'd skipped out on packing.

She sighed.

_Everything is so confusing..._

In the courtyard, Sokka was loading up Appa, Suki passing him up bags while Zuko carried more over to the saddled bison. Toph was sitting grumpily on a ledge, once again invoking her 'right to not help'. Katara shot the girl a glance before climbing up Appa's horns to help her brother tie down bags. "How'd you get her out?" she asked him.

Sokka glanced over at the unhappy blind girl. "Oh, she wasn't happy about it. I think she planned to sulk in her room all day. But, Zuko threatened to kick in the door-"

"He WHAT?"

"In a kind way!" Sokka insisted in an offended voice. "Sheesh!"

"How can kicking in someone's door be _kind?" _Katara demanded.

Sokka shrugged. "I dunno. It's _Zuko, _Katara. He's just like that. Anyway, she's accusing us of teaming up on her now, but at least she's out." He glanced at his sister. "Try not to pick any fights with her this morning, huh?"

Katara glanced away, knowing Toph would be _gunning _for a fight, just to prove she still could win arguments if nothing else, and mumbled, "It's not Toph I'm worried about."

But apparently she'd said it too quiet for Sokka to hear. Over the bags, Katara caught Zuko's eyes, and for a moment his scar seemed to overpower the rest of his features. _He burned my face! _She blinked, and he noticed her looking. He smiled a bit, and somehow the scar melted back into the background of his features, where it normally was. Katara reminded herself to breathe, and smiled back. _At least _he's _okay._

"Okay, that's everything!" Sokka announced, counting the bags.

"No it's not," Toph disagreed. "Where's Aang?"

Sokka's faced blanched. "He wasn't in his room this morning," the warrior admitted again. "But he _knew _we were leaving..."

"Has anyone seen him?" Zuko demanded roughly.

One look at the other members of his 'Team Avatar' told Katara not one of them had actually seen their namesake since he'd locked himself in his room the night before. As one, they thundered into the house and up the stairs in complete unison, each assuring themselves there was no reason to panic, despite the inexplicable rising dread in the pits of their stomachs.

"He wouldn't," Toph was muttering to herself, grumpiness apparently forgotten in the absence of 'Twinkletoes'. "He'd better not have..."

Then they were up the stairs. "Aang!" Zuko shouted, his voice tight, and Katara glanced at him to see how pale and angry the prince looked.

"Come on Lazy-Bones!" Toph ordered. "You can stop hiding - there's no more chores!"

"Toph," Katara noted. "That's you and Sokka."

Toph ignored her, and Katara bit her lip. If the earthbender was worried (and she could have sensed Aang if he were anywhere on the ground - though he could be upstairs on the wood floors or flying... hopefully...) then things weren't looking good. "Twinkletoes!" She called again. "Let's go!"

Zuko, who's legs were longest, reached Aang's door first, and tried the handle. It didn't open. His jaw tightened even more. "Aang!" he called again. "Open the door."

"Oh, just kick it down!" Sokka insisted, moving to push Zuko aside.

Zuko glanced at him, but they all knew how little the firebender cared for his property anyway, so he just nodded. "On three."

"Three!" Sokka skipped irritably, and threw himself towards the door.

Zuko added his own weight, and the door caved beneath the two boys. Sokka stumbled through as Zuko ducked around the door frame, and Katara peered over Toph's head, Suki pressing in behind her. "It's empty..." Suki's voice was just a whisper behind her.

Sokka spun once, taking in the blowing curtains, and the un-slept-in bed, then nodded. "Not here."

"Obviously!"

Sokka glared at Zuko, and the prince glanced away dejectedly, obviously on edge. Katara could understand how he felt. She too felt the rising need to see Aang. What if he was gone? What if he ran away again? Even Toph had been thinking it on the stairs, she was sure of it. It wasn't just because of the comet either. In fact, it was almost the opposite. Katara wasn't worried that he wouldn't make it to face Ozai, it was more that... She had to see him again before then. She couldn't let him go on thinking things ended between them like... like _that!_ Aang _needed _her! Where was he?

"Split up," Sokka ordered. "Search the house."

Everyone left the room, turning in different directions. Zuko even banged down the hall and wrenched open the door to his mother's room, just in case. Toph went outside and kicked her heel into the dirt a few times, which would have looked like insolence to anyone who didn't know her. Katara hoped she would sense Aang somewhere on the earth, near enough to be reached by her vibrations. But when Toph came back in and shrugged to Zuko, Katara checked the attic, and even the roof. Eventually, everyone meandered back to Aang's room, empty-handed. They were steadily growing more worried.

Sokka rubbed his chin in a manner that said he was beginning to go 'sleuth' on them, and strolled out onto the balcony. "He left his staff," the boy noted, snatching up the replacement glider Teo and his father had made Aang. "That's so strange..."

"Aang's not in the house," Zuko reported in a much more businesslike manner, seeming to dismiss Sokka's pondering tone. "And Toph says he's not close by, on the ground at least. But he can fly-"

"Not without his glider," Sokka cut in, glaring at the pole in his hands as if it had offended him somehow.

"Still," Zuko considered, "let's check the beach."

Toph nodded. "Good idea. It's harder for me to see on sand. He could be there." She turned towards the stairs. "He'd _better _be there."

Katara's nerves were growing more and more frazzled as they tromped down to the beach which last night had seemed so wonderful. Now it seemed eerie. The swan-gull cried echoed over the vast expanse of sea and sky, and she wondered where, exactly, her Aang had gone. She had never realized before how easy it was for him to just disappear. Air bender, waterbender, earthbender... he could be anywhere! _He'll be at the beach, _she told herself. _We've looked everywhere else. He's probably just upset still. But we can fix it. I _will _fix it, everything, if he's just at the beach!_

But when they got to the beach, it was empty.

Zuko growled and kicked a sand dune. Katara wondered if the lump was what was left of the Appa sand sculpture, or the Suki-blob-monster. "I'll see if I can track him," Sokka decided.

"Track him!" Katara demanded. "He can _fly_!"

"No, he can't!" Sokka insisted. "Doesn't anyone listen? I have his glider!"

"Stop it," Suki interrupted. "I'll help you Sokka." She led her boyfriend away, giving a pointed look at Toph that Katara knew _she _was supposed to catch.

But Katara was in no mood to help the other girl, she was too distraught herself. Toph's face was turning disappointed, then angry rather fast, but Katara didn't want to know what her own looked like. She glanced at Zuko, who, fortunately, wasn't looking at her. He looked even paler than normal.

"It's not like we're going to find tracks, Sokka," Zuko stated, moving over to help his friend. "I've trailed you guys for a long time. Aang barely leaves-"

"Footprints!" Sokka shouted, pointing his finger.

Katara's head whipped up and she rushed over to see the tracks Sokka had discovered. The rest of the group was doing the same though, so they all converged to stare at the strange marks. "See, look!" Sokka pointed excitedly. "There's his footprints! See how light they are?"

"Yup," Toph agreed, a bit of hope returning to her voice. She obviously couldn't see where the tracks ended if they made her hopeful. "That's Twinkletoes, all right. He walks on his toes, the featherweight. Where do they lead?"

"The trail ends here," Sokka told her, his voice calculating again.

"What do you mean, 'here'?" Toph asked.

"I mean, here," Sokka answered. "Like, they walk straight out into the water, and disappear." Toph shuddered, and suddenly Katara remembered the blind girl couldn't swim.

"He _can _waterbend," Katara noted, to calm her. "Maybe that's why he just walked out into the water like that?"

"Yeah, but why?" Sokka considered again. "And he didn't stop by the edge and take of his clothes or anything. Just walked straight in... Plus, these tracks are old. Hours, at least. See how the tide's coming in over them?"

"So... he went for a midnight swim and never came back?" Suki surmised.

"That doesn't make sense," Zuko denied.

Katara swallowed. It was the question that was hanging behind all of them, and she finally felt the need to put voice to it. "Maybe he was... captured..."

"I don't think so." She was grateful for the certainty in Sokka's tone, even if it meant the mystery was still unsolved. "There's no sign of a struggle. Like I said, he didn't seem to stop at all. And he was walking too light to be running, even for Aang. There would be stronger impressions where his toes dug in, or at least where his heal hit. But the whole print it even and round, so..." Sokka shrugged. "He just... walked right out into the water for some reason."

Toph nodded, as if it was now her turn to say the shadow lurking behind her. "I bet he ran away again." Her voice was cheery, if forced, as if somehow that would make it better.

"Again?" Zuko asked with a frown.

"Yeah," Toph revealed, her tone growing even more falsely bright in a way that Katara knew implied she was very dissappointed in the Avatar. "It's kind of a habit of his."

"You have no idea," Katara groaned, thinking of all the times Aang had run away before they even met Toph.

"So you think he ran off?" Zuko asked Sokka, and suddenly Katara realized the prince's tone was so tight because he was worried he had _scared _the young Avatar off.

She was about to take his hand (discretely of course!) and tell him it wasn't his fault - after all, he didn't know! - but Sokka was already shaking his head. "Ah-uh. Nope. He didn't run." Toph quirked her head to show she was listening, even though she was leaning over to finger the tracks she couldn't see and not looking anywhere near Sokka. "He left behind Appa and his glider," Sokka reminded her. "He always runs away on at least _one _of them."

Toph made an unhappy sound in her throat, but it was clear she was actually relieved to hear that it wasn't likely Aang had run away again. She dropped into her head into her hand as she squatted next to the prints and gave Sokka an exasperated face, all traces of grumpiness gone now. "Then what do you think happened to him, oh sleuthy one?"

"It's pretty obvious," Sokka said in his 'I know everything' voice. Katara hoped, this once, that he did. "Aang mysteriously disappears before an important battle? He leaves behind Appa, his glider, and everything else he owns int he material world? He doesn't even tell his friends where he's going? And right after last night's upset?" Zuko and Katara winced at the mention of the fight, but Toph seemed to be forcing cheerfulness still. "Isn't it obvious now?" Sokka rubbed his chin importantly as he watched his friends expectantly.

When he paused, Katara rolled her eyes. She glanced at Toph and Suki, and the three said in unison, "What happened to him, Sokka?" Zuko just watched them like they were mad.

But Sokka preened, at the height of his detective revelation, and puffed out his chest. "Duh! He's definitely on a spirit world journey!"

"Oh yeah!" Suki agreed, smashing her hand into her fist in an excited gesture, though she had never actually been present when Aang was on a spirit world trip.

Toph's face brightened, and Katara found herself making sense of that. If Aang couldn't go to her for help, of course he would go to Roku. That made sense.

But then Zuko, the only one not buying hopefully into Sokka's conclusions, stamped out the idea. "But if he was, wouldn't his body still be here? Or was that just how it worked at the North Pole?"

But Sokka deflated, along with their hope. "Oh yeah," the boy muttered, and Katara felt ready to pummel him. "Forgot about that."

"Maybe Sokka's right though," Suki considered. "His body could be somewhere. Maybe he swam?"

"Then he's gotta be somewhere on Embler Island," Katara decided. "His spirit jouneys have never lasted more than a few hours - half a day at most. If he disappeared in the night, he should be waking up somewhere soon. Let's split up and look for him."

"Right," Sokka agreed. "I'll get Appa and we'll hunt from the air-"

"I'm going with Zuko!"

Zuko blinked and glanced up at Katara, who hadn't even had a chance to move towards him. Instead, Toph was attached to his arm like glue. After her grumpiness that morning, it was more than a bit of a surprise. He shrugged at the waterbender, who felt equally perplexed. After a moment, Toph seemed to sense everyone's eyes on her, or at least noticed their stunned stillness, and stopped hugging Zuko's arm (what she could reach of it anyway) to glare at them. "What?" she demanded, pressing into him childishly and making the prince flush. "Everyone else went on a life changing field trip with Zuko," she pressed on, obviously unaware of Zuko's growing blush. "Now it's my turn."

"All right then," Sokka concluded. "Suki, you're with Katara. Search the town, on foot. Dress Fire Nation - take Azula's clothes if yours are packed. Zuko, we still want you and Toph away from people - too recognizable - so take the forest and beaches. Appa and I will search the skies. Meet back here in three hours. If Aang's on a spirit journey, he'll be awake by then, and if we haven't found him, he'll come back." He looked at all of them, his eyes serious again. "Good luck."

They nodded before Toph started dragging Zuko off. Katara watched, a bit annoyed, but Zuko twisted his head around to mouth 'sorry' and Katara, in spite of the situation, actually found a sort of hilarity in the two. The three foot earthbender who couldn't see was totally cowing the easily twice her size firebending prince. Katara shook her head at Zuko and mouthed 'Talk To Her', and he nodded, before following her into the trees.

"Think he'll help out Toph?" Suki whispered behind her.

"I hope so," Katara agreed. "She seems to be responding to him well. And we could all use some support after... you know..."

Suki's hand closed on her shoulder. "We'll find him." Her voice was strong and full of promise.

Katara nodded. _I know we will. We have to. _She straightened her back and turned towards the town. "Let's go."

* * *

**PREVIEW of the sequel story which takes place around 3-5 years after the end of the hundred year war:**

_"My Lord the-"_

_"Irrigation ditches of the southern walls needs to be fixed. I know Gen Fu. You've told me countless times already. When we can spare the manpower for it, it will be done. In due time," the Phoenix King insisted when the man opened his mouth again. "Next."_

_Zuko adamantly waved his hand, impatience gnawing at his core._

_"Very well my Lord," the adviser complied shortly. "Admiral Chou is demanding to know why we took half of his eastern fleet and converted the ships for raw materials," Gen Fu casually stated as he read through his report._

_"Admiral Chou does not make demands, Gen Fu. Not of me." Zuko paused, considering the situation. "Did you tell him why?"_

_"Yes sire. We needed the materials to repair the damage done to the capital and the surrounding country side," the old adviser answered nonchalantly._

_"How'd he take it?" Zuko's one good brow arched quizzically._

_"Not well, your grace."_

_The newly titled Phoenix King could just visualize the angry face of the old Admiral, that familiar vain on his forehead popping out._

_"Good. Maybe that will remind him who he serves. He needs to learn his place. What good are warships in times of peace anyway?" Zuko sighed heavily as he felt a small bead of sweat trickling down his forehead._

_Summer had once been his favorite season, back when he was a boy and free to take off his robes and splash in the cool blue sea. Yet it only served to hinder him now, as the clothes the ruler of the Fire Nation wore were heavy and warm. How quickly the times changed._

_"If you say so your grace," Gen Fu solemnly bowed, bringing Zuko back to reality._

_"Is there anything else?" Zuko asked, shifting around his throne, carefully trying to avoid the metal spikes that protruded. The golden throne of the Phoenix King might have been a sight of power and prestige, but all Zuko saw was an ugly chair that was gruesomely uncomfortable to sit on. "I haven't got all day."_

_"Um, a miss Ty Lee was here earlier. She left a cordial invitation for you my Lord. Something about a grand circus act, I do believe. She said they would be performing tonight, here in the capital. Sounds horrid, but I took the message..."_

_Zuko's wearisome face lit up a little at the mention of the pretty acrobat's name. It had been some time now since he had seen a familiar face, much less a friend. After all that was said and done, even after having fought against Fire Lord Ozai's world war, Ty Lee went back to her circus home with no hesitation. No thoughts of responsibility or want of glory. Nothing Zuko could offer her seemed to appeal more than the spotlight and tightrope. She claimed to have never wanted anything more. Even risking her life in the war seemed to have been selfless on her part._

_I just wanted to help my friends. That's all. He swore he could still her that cheerful voice._

_He would have gladly left all of this heat, and pomp, for a chance to see her smiling face again. He'd never gotten a chance to see her at the circus. He wondered dimly how she'd look as she walked on that tight rope, dazzling millions. Her fame in the war garnered enough attention to her circus that she was now the main attraction. The Magnificent Ty Lee, the posters showed._

_But… Duty got in the way. Somehow, it always did._

_He almost missed the old days..._

_"Give her my regards Gen Fu. Sadly I won't be able to attend… I have other pressing matters to attend to."_

_Zuko stood up, not being able to stand the infernal chair anymore. Casually he walked towards the window, letting the blessedly cool air caress his face._

_"…I suppose you would like to send her a bouquet of fire lilies along with that apology, my king?" Gen Fu suggested._

_Zuko shook his head a bit; a small boyish grin was across his face. Ancient he might be, but Gen Fu had faithfully served as his family's counsel for years. His body might be waning but his mind was still as sharp as the day he served Zuko's grandfather, Fire Lord Azulon. No details were left unchecked whenever Gen Fu was concern._

_"And what girl would not like a bouquet of fire lilies?" Zuko smirked. A pretty flower for a pretty girl. Ty Lee would understand._

_Old Gen Fu smiled back in return. "Very well sire."_

_"Is that all?" Zuko asked, with his hands behind him, casually observing the outside world. His golden eyes glancing in the distance as it looked at massive mountains and a blue sky._

_"Lady Mai sent back a message from New Ozai-"_

_"Omashu, you mean," Zuko corrected._

_"Oh I'm terribly sorry my lord. Forced habit I suppose. Ahem… in any case lady Mai sent back a message from Omashu, sire. She said the restoration project is going well and the citizens are actually cooperating with our soldiers. At the rate they are going, she estimated that it would only take a couple more weeks for them to finish."_

_Mai's beautiful face came to mind. With her stone-like gaze and cold, uncaring attitude one would never think that she, of all people, would have volunteered to lead the restoration project of restoring the fabled city of Omashu back to its original state. But surprisingly it was Mai who came to him herself about the matter._

_My father was once governor of that place, she'd told him__. It's only right that his daughter be the one to lead this. It'll help improve my father's relation with both the colonials and the Earth Kingdom. Besides… I am so bored of this palace. Maybe the Mad King of Omashu can entertain me._

_He remembered her saying goodbye to him, remembered the last kiss they shared on the morning before she departed for the Earth Kingdom._

_That was three months ago._

_"That's… good to hear Gen Fu," Zuko stated simply. "Is there anything else on the agenda?"_

_"No… my Lord… just the usual documents and paper works that need your seal and approval, but…"_

_"Then leave me." Zuko commanded as he rubbed his temple with his left hand._

_"…Yes. Yes of course. As you will sire." Gen Fu bowed low before departing the throne room, closing the massive doors behind him._

_Alone in the room Zuko could finally drop his guard, sighing as he rubbed his left shoulder, which was sore somehow and creaked his neck. He had never felt so tired in his life. Not even an Agni Kai proved this challenging. He slowly touched the top of his hair, where the golden flame perched, the symbol of the most powerful man in the Fire Nation._

_Carefully he took it down as he examined the small regalia in his hand. So tiny a thing, yet the burden and responsibility it carried with it weighed more then the tallest mountain._

_Zuko's golden eyes were fixed upon it, his gaze unwavering and unblinking._

_"All hail Phoenix King Zuko…" he said out loud to himself, the tone in his voice mocking. Then his facade broke. "What a joke," he muttered. "I never asked for this…"_

_Zuko's head lowered, as he touched the small royal ornament to his forehead, feeling it's cool touch, flush against his forehead. It felt nice. Healing._

_The image of a lovely girl with mahogany skin, with eyes that shone like the brightest sapphires swam before his vision. Thoughts of her still came to him now and again, and even here, in the presence of his throne room, her face still haunted him._

_'What ifs' __are plentiful. Destiny is unchanging._

_He hated destiny. More specifically he hated __his destiny._

_"…I never asked for __any of this…"_

_It was not the crown he wanted. It never had been. It was the girl._


	44. Chapter 44:Aang Hunt

**Author's Note:**

_artsyelric: Haha, we're back from the dead! (well, sort of...) Trombs, why don't you explain the long absence (Mr. hurt his hand and can't type)_.

**Trombe: Tae Kwon Do. Failed tornado kick on said opponent. Landed on wrist. Stubbed and sprained fingers very badly. Ouchie. Yeah.**

**Also a shout out to our new Beta, Kuro Chocobo. You've been a big help.  
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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 44: The Aang Hunt**

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Zuko frowned. Ever since Toph had dragged him out into the excess of the humid island, the little earthbender had not said a word. It was rather unpleasant. Screaming, yelling, kicking: something that required some form of action, he could have dealt with.

But this kind of quiet was just… eerie.

"So... um, nice weather we're having..."

Somewhere in the distance a bird cawed.

Inwardly, Zuko groaned._ Nice WEATHER? How lame is that? Argh!_

While he was berating his tact, Toph stopped abruptly, reaching down towards her shoe. "Stone in your sandal?" he tried again, helpfully.

"Uh, hello," Toph smirked, her unseeing eyes glaring at a spot beneath his own, "No soles, remember?" She wiggled her toes in the fake Fire Nation boots. "Can't get rocks."

"Oh... right..."

_So, that's none for two_. Zuko scrubbed his hands over his face, searching for something else to say, opened his mouth, half an idea forming, and – thank the gods! – Toph cut him off first.

"If you want to say something, Princy, just talk. Maybe you're a noble in the Fire Nation, but you're crap at subtlety."

_This from Toph? I must be really bad..._ "Fine," Zuko snapped, a bit harsher than he meant. "What's your problem?"

"Problem?" Toph repeated. "I don't have a problem."

"Ha!" Zuko snorted. "Yeah right."

"Maybe my problem," she drew out the word cruelly before launching into the next part at a mile a minute, "is that I'm stuck out here with you, and your assumption that you know everything about everyone else's problems just because you have a million of your own! Just because your life sucks doesn't mean I have a problem!"

"Hey, come on, Toph!" he tried to interrupt. "I'm not the issue here-"

"Issue!" The earthbender squawked, her voice rising in pitch and her accusations getting wilder before Zuko's eyes. "Oh, well excuse me for thinking that the issue here was the fact that Aang, the glorious Avatar who's supposed to save all our butts, has just randomly gone missing because you had to go and try and solve his problems-"

"...Are you throwing a tantrum?" His cool voice managed to slice through her raving – barely.

Toph stopped abruptly and glared in his direction. Then she rolled her eyes at his assessment. "I'm twelve," she defended. "It's okay for me to throw tantrums."

Zuko frowned at that reasoning. "But not for me?"

"No!" she insisted promptly.

He shook his head at the unjust reasoning of the childlike mind. "Okay, so... Why are you throwing a tantrum?"

Silence.

Did she have to make this so difficult? Zuko ground his teeth together. "Did someone do something wrong?"

"No!" Toph barked.

"Then, did they say something?"

"I said, no!" Toph insisted.

"Wait... Was it something I did?" _Maybe she's making this hard because she doesn't want to talk to me personally..._

"NO!" Toph practically shouted. "Nobody did anything!"

Zuko shook his head, even more confused now than when they had started this conversation. "So... you're mad because... nobody did... anything?" No matter how he thought about it, it still sounded stupid.

"Yes!"

_What?_ "Because no one did anything? That makes you throw tantrums? Nothing?" He felt like tearing his hair out. "I'm so confused..."

"Tantrums work for you." Toph snorted irritably.

"WHAT?!" Zuko was about to give up completely: this conversation made no sense at all.

"They do!" Toph protested, a bit of bitterness in her voice now. "You throw a tantrum and it's all, 'oh Zuzu!' and Sugar Queen kisses-"

"Whaaat?" He felt like he was getting dumber by the minute, and the only thing he was saying was 'what' in many different ways.

"Don't 'whaaat' me like a moron," Toph growled. "It's obvious, after last night. You throw a hissy-fit and Katara's rushing off to comfort you; Twinkletoes gets outraged, and Sokka's coddling him in seconds, and what am I left with? What!?"

"Wait, just because I – Oh... I think I see the problem!" Zuko actually did – no one doing anything was exactly the problem. He, Aang, and Toph had gotten upset last night, and it seemed she was bitter because he and Aang got more attention from the Water Tribe siblings than her. "But, wait... Didn't you get Suki?" He remembered enough to know the warrior had gone after Toph the night before and Katara's whisper that Toph had thrown her out – why would the earthbender do that if she wanted attention?

"Suki!" Toph's tone was mocking, the Kyoshi Warrior's name twisted oddly in her mouth. "Who wants Suki?!"

"Um... I thought Sokka did?" Zuko offered, unhelpfully, starting to feel lost again.

"Oh GAG!" The earthbender followed up that sentiment by doing just that.

Then suddenly, the wheels in his head started to spin again. _Gag? Sokka and Suki? Wait, she wanted attention from..._ "No way. Are you... jealous? Of Suki!?"

And then, as if Zuko needed any better answer, Toph turned a brilliant shade of red: not just her cheeks or her ears, but practically her whole face. A brilliant, tomato red. If it was possible, he was almost tempted to put it on a stick and use it for Aang's new arch-villain: tomato-head. But even that image faded from his mind when he was faced with the sudden revelation he had just made. "You are jealous of her!" he insisted, dully.

"I am not!" Toph squeaked, further proof of just how much she was.

"So that's why you were mad," Zuko surmised. "When you said that 'nobody did anything,' what you really meant was that Sokka didn't do something – with that "something" being coming up to see what was wrong with you. He sent Suki instead. Oh, that bites..." However, Zuko was still too caught up in exuberance over figuring out that incredibly tricky explanation to feel much of any kind of bite.

But before he could gloat (even inwardly) in any way, Toph rounded on him sharply, her scarlet face now looking dangerous instead of charming or ridiculous, and jabbed a finger as high as she could reach on his chest. "Zuko I swear!" she hissed through clenched jaws, "if you tell anyone – and I mean _anyone!_ – I will bury you beneath so much rock you can't breathe, and then jump on your grave and then leave you there to suffocate to death!"

"Okay!" He insisted quickly. "Okay, Toph! I get it." She continued to glare, her suspicions obviously not appeased, and snorted angrily. "I can keep a secret," he reminded her indignantly. "After all, you didn't tell anyone about me and Katara, right?"

At this, Toph finally seemed to cool down. "Exactly," she agreed stiffly, and moments later Zuko flinched as a solid fist caught him in the ribs.

"Are you... showing affection again?" Zuko rubbed at the tender spot, wondering if he'd gotten lost somewhere again.

But Toph grinned malevolently. "Not this time, Hot- Man."

"Oh..."

There was a bit of a silence while Zuko mulled over everything he'd just put together. _So, Toph was bitter because she likes Sokka, and he paid more attention to Aang last night than her... That explains why she's always so bratty to Suki. I guess it's safe to say no one else knows this, thanks to her overly freaked out response when I figured it out, and the only reason she seems to be okay with me knowing is because she already knows about Katara and I... Oh, wait. _"Um, Toph?" The earthbender grunted in acknowledgment. "Do you, uh... I mean, who knows? About Katara and I?"

"Besides Aang?" Zuko flinched and Toph continued, "Yeah, I think he figured it out last night. Putting two and two together is not as hard as you think," She shook her head. "I guess you're just lucky that Sokka isn't that smart when it comes to you."

"He doesn't know then?"

"I don't think so," Toph snorted. "Honestly, don't you think he'd have some kind of reaction to that?"

"Yeah, I do." Inwardly, Zuko was breathing a huge sigh of relief – he wasn't sure he was ready to let the only other male friend he still had know that he was making out with his sister. "What about Suki?"

"How should I know?" Toph snipped, short-tempered again.

"Right... well, you did kick her out last night," Zuko considered.

"So, you heard about that?" Toph actually had the gall to look somewhat proud of that fact.

However, something aside from her reaction was starting to click in his mind. "Hold on. You were bitter this morning because Suki came after you last night, not Sokka... but, that doesn't explain why you threw that tantrum in the first place, does it?"

"Zuko..."

"Stop being so confusing!" Zuko barked; he himself was slightly upset now, though it cooled as fast as it had come. "Just tell me already, and stop confusing me and everyone else!"

Toph stuck up her nose and turned away from him, clearly refusing to dignify that with a response.

"Toph!" he ordered, but she continued to stomp away, for all intents oblivious of him. And a blind girl was excellent at feigning obliviousness. His cooling anger started rising again. "Ignoring me is not going to stop me from asking."

But Toph just sniffed disdainfully and walked away.

_ARGH! This 'talking to people' thing is so much harder than Aang makes it look!_ Zuko stomped on his anger. Hard. "Okay! Alright, Toph, stop! Look, obviously you want to talk about it, or you wouldn't be whining that no one chased after you last night to ask about it." Zuko hoped his reasoning made sense, but it was all or nothing now, so he went for it. "So, here I am. Talk, or don't. But we have bigger problems to deal with than this right now, so... you're going to have to get over it, one way or another."

Toph hesitated, but Zuko hadn't said it mockingly or harshly. It was just a fact, one that he stated with a heavy tone, and he waited openly for her answer, wondering what the blind girl could see in his silence, and hoping he gave... whatever it was she was searching for. Apparently, the firebender passed her inspection, because a moment later she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest with a resigned, "Fine!" Then she turned her head away stiffly. "All right. I know I like to pick fights and all-"

"Yeah," Zuko agreed roughly, but quieted when she started glare toward him.

"It's not that I don't like fights; that's not why I flipped out. It's just... When I'm the one fighting, I'm in control of it, you know?"

Zuko hesitated. "So last night, when Aang and I were fighting, you felt out of control? That's why you exploded?"

"I don't know... kinda... But also, um... You."

"Me?" Zuko's brows furrowed deeply as he tried to figure out what he'd done.

"Yeah. You... you kind of sound like..." She took a deep breath and then seemed to just spit it out. "When you fight like that, you sound like my dad."

"Ah..." Zuko felt at a sudden loss for words. I sound like her... DAD? He didn't even want to start guessing at how that made him feel, but it was way beyond awkward, especially given both of their history with their fathers. "So, then, your dad yells a lot?" he guessed.

"No, not that!" Toph protested quickly, seeing where his mind had taken things. "I meant it literally: you sound like him. Your voice. It's... low. Not like Sokka's or Aang's, so when you yell, I guess... you sound like him."

"Oh." The firebender wondered if that was better or worse. But then, he realized, to a blind girl, the sound of someone's voice was practically her whole perception of him. That hit a deeper, even more awkward chord, and Zuko shifted on his feet subtly, though he knew Toph would catch the motion with her bare feet and blank eyes. "That's really, um... disturbing."

She smirked grimly. "Tell me about it."

The still extremely awkward moment stretched out a moment longer. And longer. Zuko's brain stretched desperately to think of something – anything – else to say.

"So," Toph finally broke the silence, "Shouldn't we be... looking for Aang?"

"Yes!" Zuko agreed in a rush, not realizing that his last breath had been caught in his chest during this whole time until it all came rushing out. "I mean, um... Yeah. We should be."

The two turned and started down the beach, and with every step the awkwardness faded, left behind, lost in the palm trees along the beach. Finally relaxing, Zuko felt a small grin creep onto his face. "So... you want me to yell at Sokka in my 'daddy' voice for you?"

A moment later he had to muffle a gasp as the tiny, rock hard fist slammed into him again, but a few bruised ribs were worth the small smile that crept over Toph's face, right? The firebender certainly hoped so...

Zuko and Toph moved on and the search continued. Toph seemed better and anxious to find Aang now, but Zuko was beginning to feel surer with each passing minute that they had lost the Avatar. How and why, he didn't know, but age-old habits of hunting the Avatar told him that the boy was long gone. Still, desperately, he continued to search the sky. _Now, more than ever, I need to find you Aang..._

As they walked down the beach, Zuko's eyes fell upon the house up the hill with a lotus on the door.

* * *

Appa landed in the courtyard with a 'whoof,' the last of the party to arrive. Sokka jumped off the sky bison with an unhappy expression. "Judging by the looks on your faces," the Water Tribesman began upon meeting the others, "I'm guessing you guys didn't find Aang either."

Zuko glanced around at those who shared his steps. Toph was lounged out as if nothing in the world bothered her, though it was clearly an act, and Katara and Suki had rather defeated looks on their faces as they stared, wearily, at nothing. Zuko, until moments ago, had been burying his own face in his hands, feeling completely drained from dealing with Toph as well as his stress over Aang.

"Sorry," Suki apologized, watching her boyfriend find his feet. "Katara and I just found more of those people from the play and a bunch of their fans. Otherwise, no one had seen hide or hair of anyone matching Aang's description."

Sokka nodded and his eyes turned left to Zuko and Toph. "You two?"

"No luck," Zuko reported dully as Toph sat up. "It's like he just... disappeared. There's nothing."

"Except those footprints," Sokka mused.

"He didn't run away," Toph said suddenly, making everyone's eyes turn back to her. "I know what you're all thinking, but I don't believe it. Twinkletoes may have a bad habit of doing that, but this time, I don't think he did."

"Toph," Katara started, patronizingly, "I know we all want to believe the best of Aang, but he's been under a lot of stress lately – and I mean, a lot..." She trailed off introspectively for a second, and then continued, "But it's not as if this was the first time he ran off."

"Whatever," Toph huffed. "I prefer Sokka's idea."

"The idea where he went swimming and was kidnapped by a giant elephant-squid?" Sokka asked excitedly.

"No, dummy," Toph groaned. "The spirit-journey one."

"But," Suki considered, "wouldn't Aang usually be back from a trip to the Spirit World by now?"

The earthbender shrugged. "Who knows? We've never really been on one – except Sokka, and he doesn't remember much." Sokka shrugged at that and Zuko eyed him curiously. Sokka had been to the Spirit World? How odd... "We have no idea what he may have learned there, or how long it would take."

"Toph, I'm not trying to be negative," Katara put in, "but it's never taken Aang this long on a spirit journey. If he really did go to the Spirit World, he would have been back by now. But he's not. So if he didn't run away, why would he leave?"

"Maybe he learned something on the other side," Toph shrugged. "Like, in the play. Maybe, for some reason, he decided to face this alone."

"He wouldn't leave us!" Katara protested.

But Toph shrugged again, and Zuko almost couldn't help but feel that the earthbender had a point. He knew that she was just resolutely looking for another answer besides Aang running away because of their talk earlier, but... the idea had merit. If Aang thought he was saving them by leaving them behind, wouldn't he do it? Zuko knew he would have...

"I agree with Katara," Suki spoke up, "I don't think he would just leave without saying anything. He doesn't really like doing things alone."

"Shows what you know." Toph muttered under her breath, but Zuko didn't think anyone except himself, who was sitting next to her, had noticed.

"Then what about Appa and his glider?" Sokka pointed out. "I still don't understand; why would he leave them?"

"Well, has anyone noticed that Momo is gone too?" Toph suggested, as if forcing her point.

"Oh no!" Sokka wailed suddenly, dropping to his knees and pleading toward the sky. "I knew it was only a matter of time!" He leapt down the steps in a single bound and grabbed at the sky bison's mouth. "Appa ate Momo!"

"I meant," Toph explained, "that maybe Momo is with Aang."

"Momo!" Sokka screamed, ignoring her. "I'm coming for you, buddy!" Then he actually threw himself into the sky bison's mouth.

"Sokka," Katara deadpanned patronizingly, "Appa didn't eat Momo. Toph's right. He's probably with Aang."

"That's just what Appa wants you to think." With that theory in mind, Sokka flung himself the rest of the way into Appa's mouth, and the sky bison growled uncomfortably as Sokka slid partway down his throat.

"Sokka!" Suki chastised. "I'm pretty sure Appa's a vegetarian!" Appa looked at her with appreciative eyes as he choked on Sokka's writhing form.

"Ah!" Katara moaned and drooped her head so her hair covered her face. "This is a disaster!"

"You said it," Toph grumbled.

"Fine." Zuko suddenly pushed himself to his feet and strode down the stairs purposefully. "Sokka, get out of the bison's mouth." Sokka kicked his legs as Appa drooled on everything. Zuko grabbed his ankle and pulled him backwards, depositing the warrior in a pile of saliva at his feet. "We have a real problem here. It doesn't matter if Aang ran away, was kidnapped, or is on a spirit journey and ditched us. The facts are that Aang is nowhere to be found, and the comet is only a few days away."

"I can count," Sokka scoffed, shaking slobber at the prince.

"This isn't a joke!" Zuko grumbled, sidestepping. "We have to find Aang."

"What should we do, Zuko?" Katara interrupted, that hopeful tone back in her voice, half business like, half full of faith.

Zuko suddenly felt slightly intimidated by it. She shouldn't trust him that much. "I don't know. How should I know?" But then he realized it wasn't just Katara. Toph's head was turned towards him, as if she was waiting for something, orders probably, and even Suki was watching him expectantly. It was almost creepy. "What?" he asked, and they continued to blink and stare at him. Sokka stood and brushed off the bison drool before glancing back and forth between his friends and Zuko. Then he seemed to catch on, and moments later he too decided to stare at Zuko patiently. "Why are you all looking at me?"

"Duh," Sokka rolled his eyes. "Because we're waiting to hear your plan."

"A plan? Me? Aren't the plans your thing?" Zuko turned in Sokka's direction and the other boy just shrugged, and no one else had spoken. _Argh!_ "Why do I have to have a plan?"

"Well," Katara explained, "you are kind of the expert at tracking Aang."

"Yeah," Toph agreed. "If anyone's got experience hunting the Avatar, it's you."

"Besides," Suki added, "you've been quiet all morning. For the little I know of you, that either means you're brooding or you've been thinking up a plan." Zuko eyed her sourly, and the girl shrugged as if she was above the need to explain herself. Then, the firebender suddenly remembered that she herself had a been leader back on her island of Kyoshi. She had probably dealt with lots of different people, and now that she was being a quiet observer, she could pick up a lot about her teammates. He would have to be more cautious around her with things he wanted... ahem... kept secret... "So, do you have a plan?" she asked pointedly.

"But," Zuko tried one final protest, "What about Sokka..." The boy chose that moment to slip in the bison drool and fall back into the puddle of slime. Zuko almost winced. "Fine." He ran his hands through his hair. "I don't really have a... plan... well not a well thought out one..."

Katara rolled her eyes, making her hair fall over her shoulder with the movement of her head. "Just tell us what you would do if you were in charge of your ship again."

_Probably yell at Uncle..._ But somehow, Zuko didn't think that answer would fly, and he did have a plan... sort of. "Sokka," he called, his mind racing now. "How much money do we have left?"

"Why?" the Water Tribesman asked, climbing out of the now muddy patch he'd been squirming in.

"Just give me the pouch." Zuko proffered his hand and Sokka grumbled as he handed over the money bag, and the Fire Prince shook it once to make sure it was slobber free. "You can still hold it if you want," he shot back at the other boy when Sokka continued whining. _Only about thirty gold pieces, the rest coppers and silvers... I wonder if it'll be enough..._ Zuko sighed as he thought of the central piece to his plan and decided, no, it probably wouldn't be enough. They would need more, or else move to his back up plan, and Chan had already closed that door quite firmly... "Wait! What's this?" Zuko's fingers dug a round, wooden token out of the coins.

"What do you think it is?" Sokka demanded, snatching the piece. "It's a White Lotus tile!"

"I know what it is," Zuko spluttered. "I meant, whose is it?"

"Mine," Sokka stated, as if Zuko were an idiot. "Why else would I put it in my coin bag?"

Zuko refrained from pointing out that it was his money in Sokka's coin pouch. There was now a more pressing matter at hand. "You don't play Pai Sho."

"Oh, that board game with all the wooden pieces?" Toph chimed in excitedly. "No. He doesn't."

"I bet you'd be good at it though, Sokka," Suki considered. Zuko glared at them. "Okay," Suki raised her hands, admitting her own surrender. "Enough from the peanut gallery."

"If you don't play Pai Sho, why do you have a White Lotus tile?" Zuko reiterated to Sokka.

The boy shrugged, and Zuko was sure that he had him now. Only, how could Sokka be in Uncle's stupid club? "My master gave it to me," the Water Warrior supplied. "The man who taught me swordsmanship for a while and helped me make my space sword!"

"Your sword?" Zuko repeated, eying the sheathed black blade that resisted Firebending. "Wait, you mean Master Piandao? He gave you this!?"

"Yes," Sokka insisted. "Didn't you pay attention to the play?"

"Sokka," Suki whispered, tugging his sleeve. "Um, I don't think they included that part in the play."

"We were undercover then, Mr. Know-it-all. Although you did give out your real name. What happened to Wang Fire, huh?" Toph added, referring to Sokka's adopted alias. "And I hardly think that Piandao brags about you."

"Hey!" Sokka protested. "I was a great student! He told me so. He even gave me that tile as a parting gift, remember?" Sokka scratched his head. "Never did figure out why..."

_Piandao..._ Zuko marveled. _So, that means Master Piandao is in Uncle's Order of the White Lotus? How big IS this thing?_ Zuko's mind felt slightly scrambled, even though he now held the final piece he needed to make his plan work. "So, Sokka's been to the Spirit World and knows the ways of the White Lotus?" Zuko muttered out loud. "Hmm, maybe I did put him in the right bedroom here..."

"Zuko, enough with this tile nonsense," Katara started, "What's the-"

"Sokka, you're with me," Zuko stated suddenly, pulling the money bag shut and tossing it back to the boy. "Oh, and don't spend any more gold until I say so, or unless I'm able to get more money... somehow. While we're gone, I want you girls to do a sweep of... Sokka's... room. See if you can find any clothes or belongings that aren't his."

"Why?" Katara asked.

"That room used to belong to someone else," Zuko reported. "I need something – anything of theirs – that they might have left behind."

"Got it." Katara nodded, seeming to understand that Zuko was still trying to think through everything, and not asking for explanations like she normally would.

"Where are you going?" Suki asked.

Zuko's eyes turned toward the direction he had searched on the beach that morning. "Sokka and I need to pay an Admiral friend of mine another visit."

"Oh, sweet!" Toph chimed. "I am TOTALLY in!"

* * *

A loud banging reverberated through the thick wooden door, and scroungy Chan slouched towards the door. "Yeah, yeah! I'm coming!" He opened the door testily.

"Guess who?"

The door slammed shut with a solid thunk.

"A friend of yours?" Sokka inquired to the Fire Prince as the door thudded in his face.

"Yeah, all my friends slam the door in my face," Zuko deadpanned. "Toph, knock it down."

The earthbender ginned malevolently and cracked her knuckles. "Woo-hoo! I thought you'd never ask!" Just as she raised her fist eagerly, a voice called down the stairs.

"Junior! Who's at the door?" Upon hearing this, Zuko caught Toph's fist just moments before it made impact with the doorway.

"No one, Dad!" A squeaky voice shouted back. "It's, uh... it's Ruon-Jian!"

"I assure you, sir," Zuko called loudly from the porch outside, "it's not Ruon-Jian."

"Who is Ruon-Jian?" Sokka's voice perked up.

"Nobody, shut up," Zuko snapped back.

"I should shut up?" the Admiral asked, opening the door.

"Oh, ah, not you, sir," The Fire Prince answered, flustered.

"Ah, It's you. And I see you've brought a friend." Admiral Chan's eyes left Sokka to take in Toph's presence again. "Another one."

"You might actually like this one." Zuko grinned at the Admiral. Reaching back, he grasped Sokka's wrist and thrust the younger boy in front of him to address Chan the elder. "This is Sokka. He travels with me and our...uh...special friend. Go on, Sokka. Do your thing."

"What thing?"

"The... the thing!" Zuko spluttered. "With the tile!" Sokka stared at him stupidly. "The lotus thing from you coin pouch, Sokka!"

"Coin? Tile?" Sokka remarked. "That's not even money! You think we can bribe this guy with wooden coins-"

"We're not bribing him – I thought you knew!"

"Knew what?"

Zuko growled angrily. "You said you knew about your tile."

"What's to know? It's a tile!" Zuko felt his jaw going slack at Sokka's exclamation. "You just dragged me here, and then told me to bribe this guy I've never met before with a tile. We can't bribe him! Look at this place! It's loaded – he's got a whole table of Pai Sho tiles right over there!"

"You... You idiot!" Zuko raged.

"Boys," Admiral Chan's voice cut in smoothly, "Why don't you come inside to address this? Shouting our business to all the neighbors is hardly decent."

With a fiery glare, Zuko stomped past Sokka into the house, with Toph on his heels, already grinning and searching out vibrations for the younger Chan. "Hey buddy!" she greeted him as Junior made a dash for the stairs.

"Stay right there," his father ordered. "I may have need of you. Now, what's this about a tile?"

Zuko snatched the White Lotus piece out of Sokka's hand. "This. Piandao gave it to him." He raised an eyebrow. "I doubt anything The great Swordmaster bestows upon a student of his should be taken lightly, do you?"

The Admiral smiled slightly. "I would have to agree, however... I don't think your friend knows what he has."

"Why don't you tell us both?" Zuko pressed on.

Chan smiled even wider. "Sorry," he said, as if enjoying denying the boys. "That's not how it works. You see, he has to figure it out." He glanced at Zuko, "By himself. Else he is not worthy of our... confidence."

"But that's not fair!" Zuko protested. "He's stupid!"

"Hey!" Sokka objected. "I'll have you know that I'm considered a genius! I helped invent the War-Balloons –"

"Blah blah blah," Toph quipped. "We know, Sokka."

"If you're so smart," Zuko countered, "why don't you figure it out?"

Sokka blinked at Zuko a few times, then rubbed his chin as if considering the problem. He rubbed his neck and rolled his shoulders, eyes darting around the place, opened his mouth once, shut it, and rubbed his chin again.

"Well?" Zuko demanded.

Sokka paused, and then his eyes seemed to light up. "Ah-ha!" he gasped and Zuko leaned in hopefully. "You want me to figure out why you dragged me here!"

Zuko moaned. "No, I want you to solve the meaning of life! YES! Why are you here, Sokka, in this house with this man, and this," he waved the tile in front of Sokka's face, "White Lotus tile?"

"Um... We're going to play Pai Sho?"

Toph snorted as Zuko's shoulders sagged in defeat. Chan's lips quirked in a mocking smile, "The boy is getting warmer," he encouraged hopefully.

"No, he's not!" Zuko shouted impatiently. "This is impossible!"

"Please refrain from smashing any more of my priceless household items, Prince Zuko. I don't think my house could stand a second royal rampage."

"Prince!" the younger Chan choked. "Royal rampage?!"

"Finally!" Toph rolled her eyes blindly. "The dolt figures it out. I can't even see him and I knew that!"

"But – but he's a wanted criminal! Dad!"

His father glanced at him as if measuring his son. Apparently, the boy came up wanting. "Maybe you should go to your room after all, Junior."

"What?! But I- Ugh! I never get to do anything!" Chan Jr. kicked angrily at the stairs before thundering up them and slamming his door.

"I'm sorry," the Admiral apologized. "He's still a bit... childish..."

"Tell me about it," Zuko ground out, glaring at Sokka.

"What?" the warrior protested. "I'm trying!"

"Well," Now it was Chan's turn to consider. "Piandao did say that his newest pupil would be one of... those..." Zuko glanced at him. "Special students," the man smiled amiably.

"Oh, I get it!" Sokka caught on. Then, "Hey!"

"I suppose you could help him a bit," the Admiral relented.

"Thank you!" Zuko agreed, dragging Sokka aside. The blue eyed warrior glared at him angrily, but there was also curiosity. "Okay, Sokka, I really need you to figure this out. If we're going to find Aang, we'll need a lot of support. The more people the better, get it? So why would I bring you here?"

"To get... help?" Sokka tried.

"Yes!" Zuko confirmed.

"From an old man?"

"Yes– No! Alright..." Zuko ran a hand through his hair. "Let's try this a different way. Piandao gave you the White Lotus tile, right?" Sokka nodded. "Did he say anything... important? Something that sticks out in your mind particularly? Maybe a lesson or a... greeting?" he prompted helpfully.

Suddenly, Sokka's eyes widened. "I got it!"

"You do?" Zuko asked, almost disbelieving his luck.

Sokka nodded and turned back to Admiral Chan. "My master often told me that the way of the sword does not belong to one nation, but that the knowledge of the arts belongs to us all. I remember that much at least." The Water Tribe warrior beamed with pride and it showed through his confident stare.

"Well, at least we know you are indeed Piandao's pupil." He bowed towards Sokka in a courteous manner. " I do not think I have introduced myself properly yet. I am Admiral Wunin Chan. Greetings young Sokka. It has been some time since we had an initiate of the Water Tribes."

"You know who I am?"

"We know many things, young one but frankly it was your name that gave that away." The older gentleman chuckled. "Anyway let us be done with this introduction. For the White Lotus opens wide to those who know its secret."

Sokka opened his mouth and Zuko grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, forcing him to bow. After a moment, Admiral Chan straightened and invited them up with a gracious wave of his hand. "Come. We will talk." He glanced at Toph. "I'm afraid you have to wait here for us again, young earthbender. Feel free to call on my son again if you have any needs."

"Oh, I will." Toph agreed quickly, a mischievous glint in her unseeing eyes.

Zuko tugged Sokka up the stairs behind Chan, whispering to him fiercely the whole way. "They're a secret society: very secluded, very knowledgeable. I only know about them through my Uncle – I've no idea how you got accepted here, but I intend to use it. So stop embarrassing me."

"A secret society!" Sokka echoed. "Is that what this is about?" Zuko nodded. "How cool is that? I'm a member!"

"Not for long, if you keep acting like this," Zuko snapped. "So shut up, and follow my lead."

"You don't have to be so grouchy," Sokka whined. "It's my lotus tile." But he followed Zuko into Chan's war room nonetheless.

"So," Admiral Chan smiled, "Why have you returned? I thought we finished this discussion... last time."

"Can we please cut the cryptic remarks?" Zuko pushed. "Sokka may be an idiot, but you're not. We're traveling with the Avatar and we know who you are. Or, at least, I know." He glanced back up at the Admiral. "The Avatar is missing. We could use some help."

Chan's eyebrows shot towards his scalp. "Missing? As in you... lost him?"

"Well, technically, he lost himself," Sokka pointed out.

"Didn't I tell you to shut it?" Zuko snapped at Sokka, who quieted immediately.

"You're an amusing young fellow, aren't you?" Chan remarked, eying Sokka. "I can see why Piandao trained you. He always did have a soft spot for... oddities..."

Only Zuko's glare kept Sokka's mouth shut. "Look, Admiral," he tried again, "I need information. The Order has eyes everywhere – I know that. You must know some way we can find him."

"And a Prince of the Fire Nation doesn't have his own... resources?" Chan asked.

"Well, I do, but... Someone kind of... wasted all our funds." He narrowed his eyes further at Sokka.

"Hey!" The Water Tribesman protested again, "I didn't waste them! I used them to buy food."

"And clothes for your girlfriend, when I gave her a whole closet of perfectly acceptable–"

"You said you didn't care!" Sokka shot back.

"Well, I didn't. Back then." Zuko shook his head. "That's not the point."

Chan smirked. "You had a point?"

"Yes, sir. My point is that resources cost money. We don't have the necessary funds to employ my usual contact. I was hoping you had another answer." After a moment, he added, "Please."

Chan sighed. "I'm sorry. I really am. But it's not my place to tell you – either of you – anything." Zuko's face fell. "That does not, however, mean I am useless. I have plenty of my own... funds... if that is what you require."

Zuko's eyes widened slightly. The man was offering to pay for his expenditures out of his own pocket book, not the Order's. And after Zuko had destroyed his home! "Sir, that would be–"

"The least I can do," Chan cut him off quickly. Then he added, "For the Avatar."

"Of course."

Admiral Chan watched him for another moment before rising and leaving the room, presumably to fetch these 'funds'. Once the door closed, Zuko looked back at Sokka, who was sizing the Prince up. "What?"

"You have a plan?" Sokka asked. "To find Aang?"

"I have several," Zuko admitted. "But I'm not sure yet which one will work."

Sokka grinned widely. "I knew you were the right guy for the job! Yup, that's why I let you have it."

Zuko smirked. "Let me have it?"

"Oh yeah," Sokka agreed, rotating his shoulders dramatically. "Leadership role and all that. I was getting tired of carrying all the weight around here. You know, being the brains of the outfit and stuff. Hard work, hard work."

"I'm sure." And just like that, the situation seemed almost comical, instead of hopelessly dreary, like Zuko was quite sure it should be.

"Here." Admiral Chan came back in the room and dropped a coin purse on a desk that made Sokka's eyes water.

"Thank you," Zuko said quickly, snatching it before Sokka could. "I think I'll carry it this time."

"A wise decision, my Prince," Chan quipped. "We all learn best from mistakes. Now, is there anything else?"

Zuko paused. He wasn't sure where to go with that, but he had a feeling Chan was trying to lead him somewhere, in that annoyingly cryptic manner it seemed that all old men spoke in. "Should there be?" he tried.

"Perhaps there's something you'd like to tell me?" Chan suggested. "I would imagine someone traveling with the Avatar, lost or not, would be privy to some valuable information of their own?" He offered his statement like a question, but Zuko knew it was a request.

"What kind of information?" Zuko wondered, slightly suspicious.

"I don't decide what to do with the information, I simply seek it out," Chan answered plainly. "But I can assure you that the individuals who do are on your side."

Zuko hesitated and glanced at Sokka, who shrugged unhelpfully. "Well, if this Order is even half of what I think it is, I'm sure you're aware that both Sokka and I spent some considerable time at the Boiling Rock. Would that help at all?" Zuko honestly wasn't sure what kind of information system the Order of the White Lotus had, but anything that would help stop Ozai couldn't hurt, not at this point.

"That depends," Chan considered. "We've been tracking a group of escapees that left, but we've no idea what happened in there. It seems that known Fire Nation criminals have teamed up with Earth Kingdom heroes, and some of the Fire Nation's top assassins never came out." Zuko barely withheld a wince as Mai's dark eyes, the same eyes that had haunted his latest dreams, flashed across his vision. "A few prisoners," he glanced pointedly at Zuko, "disappeared without much of a trace. Without being there ourselves, it would be impossible to know who to approach, if indeed any should be recruited."

"Recruited?" Zuko repeated, suddenly feeling this was even bigger, yet again, than he had pictured.

"It's just a term," Chan brushed it off easily.

Zuko had only to think of Mai rotting in the prison cell, and his decision was made. "I think I can answer any questions about that. The assassins you mentioned are... friends of mine."

"Not your sister's?" Chan insisted.

"Not anymore," Zuko clarified. "I'm pretty sure Azula's not going to take them back. Not after what Mai did."

"Who, your girlfriend?" Sokka interrupted. "The one that rescued us?"

"Ah," Chan smiled lightly. "I see how it is."

Zuko glared at Sokka, but addressed the Admiral. "Regardless, Mai would be a valuable asset to you if she could be reached."

"You think she would aid us?" Chan asked, surprised.

"I think she might, if she was sure she could trust you." Zuko offered and Chan nodded. "The Warden, her Uncle," he emphasized, "might value her freedom even more, now that he's already failed his job once."

"And the group heading towards Ba Sing Se?"

Zuko realized he wouldn't get to know if they could help Mai. He would just have to hope. It didn't hurt to try though, right? "They're lead by an earthbender who calls himself The Boulder – if he has a real name, I don't know it."

"The Boulder does not need a name!" Sokka interrupted with reckless gusto.

"You'll have to excuse him," Zuko snorted. "He's a fan-boy." Sokka made an affronted noise, which Zuko ignored. "If you want any real information on the man, I'm sure you could ask the only earthbender to have ever beaten him. She's downstairs in your living room."

"Interesting." The Admiral did look interested. "The Avatar chooses his teachers well."

Sokka didn't let Zuko acknowledge the backwards compliment. He'd kept quiet for too long and jumped into the conversation now. "The Boulder and Wei – that's the old guy from the Terra Team – are headed towards Ba Sing Se. They want to reclaim it for the Earth King."

Chan's eyebrows shot towards his scalp. "Do they?"

"Absolutely," Sokka confirmed. Then he frowned, "I'm not sure if my father plans to join them or not, though..."

"Sokka... Of the Water Tribe. Now I seem to recall your name. Your father, is he not the infamous Blue Wolf Hakoda?" Chan asked.

"the one and the same sir," Zuko interrupted his friend's sudden tirade, "That's why we infiltrated into the Boiling Rock to begin with. It was, um... an attempt to free him."

"It seems it worked," the old man commented simply.

"In a... roundabout way," Zuko admitted.

"So where is the Chief now?" Chan questioned. "We had assumed he would be traveling with you."

"He was, but we had to split up." Zuko frowned. "It was... quick and unexpected, and we didn't have time to create a rendezvous. He's with some others, kids and escapees who'd also be helpful to you, though I've no idea where he is. The last we saw him was the Western Air Temple."

"Hopefully, he will seek us out," Chan said.

"Dad's in your society?" Sokka gaped.

"No," the Admiral denied. "But he has come across our agents before. We have means to reach him if what you say is true. I can only hope he will see us. Now, if there's nothing else important..." Neither boy said anything. "Splendid. I have one last parting gift." The man reached inside his red robes and pulled forth a shining metal clasp. "For you, young water warrior."

"Ooh! What is it?" Sokka asked, reaching out to grab his gift away. "A belt buckle? Awesome!" He slid it onto his waistband. "Cool! Do I look like The Boulder?"

"No," Zuko snapped, ripping the thing off his sash. "You do not. Give me that."

"It's mine!" Sokka protested.

"Maybe, but I have a feeling it's more than just ornamental, right, Admiral?"

The man nodded. "You are right. The lotus engraved on that not only marks Sokka as an initiate, one of our own, but it is a key part of his journey. That is, if he wants to find out more."

Zuko nodded abruptly and tucked the belt buckle into the coin pouch. "You old men and your riddles and hidden meanings...but...thank you, sir. I won't lose it."

"I wouldn't either!" Sokka argued, but Zuko ignored him.

"Thank you for your time."

Admiral Chan inclined his head again. "And thank you for your information. It was well worth the cost."

Zuko tucked the money bag away and let Chan escort him downstairs, where they rescued his son from Toph's grasp. Having collected his earthbender friend, Zuko again thanked their host, and left the house with more than just a full purse. He now had two solid, potential plans and the means to pursue them, as well as hope for Mai.

The fire of determination burned ever so brightly in his eyes.

He was back on the Avatar's trail.


	45. Chapter 45:Seedy Taverns

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: …_

**Trombe: Alright people. While Artsy takes this time to wipe that blank look on her face-**

_artsyelric: hey! XPPPP_

**Trombe: -Thank you for your noted concern about my hand. Obviously it's loads better seeing as how I'm able to write again. One more thing. Some of you have been protesting about some of the antics Sokka did in the previous chapter. I assure you, some of those we did not make up. They're on the show itself. We just played upon his goofiness side more. The boy may be a tactical genius at times but he is an idiot as well. Get used to that. He's not Sun Tzu or Zhuge Liang (Kong Ming). Sokka straddles that line between genius and insanity quite well. That's probably the reason why you all love him so much.**

_artsyelric: i agree. sokka's genius comes as much from thinking outside the box as it does from any real 'strategic background'. zuko, like most of the other fire nation soldiers, follows prescribed tactics taught since birth. sokka has no such mandates. his goofy nature makes him a spontaneous and unpredictable opponent, because you never know what he'll do. which makes him AWESOME XDD plus, in our story, he's feeling a bit overwhelmed as his carefree, goofy nature conflicts with zuko's mysterious, controlling leadership... poor boys...  
_

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 45: Seedy Taverns**

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"Zuko, I don't want to tell you how to do your job," Sokka started again, "But... why are we headed towards the Earth Kingdom? There's no way that Aang's there."

Zuko glanced backwards slightly from his spot at Appa's reins, that same, still confidence surrounding him again. "Just trust me," he answered mysteriously.

Katara did.

It was so strange. Just days ago she had been the one preaching against trusting Zuko, and now... She shook her head. Even stranger was the simple way he was leading today, almost as if he were a mature adult... Not that they weren't grown, of course! Just that... he seemed to know something they did not.

And whatever Zuko knew, he kept to himself with an almost professional attitude.

Katara felt her heart skip a little beat. Aang she understood, Sokka she could see right through, though Zuko was... and probably _always _would be, a mystery. Every time she thought she got a handle on him, she uncovered some new layer, an aspect of his persona she knew barely anything about. This was another one of those times, just as he had been the night before, the laughing, smiling, scared Zuko. It was all unnerving. But it wasn't bad; at least that's what she honestly felt.

When they'd finally convinced the Fire Prince to take charge, he had seemed hesitant, as if his mind were in a million different places at once. When Zuko had left with Sokka and Toph, he was preoccupied and tense, worrying his fingers over that strange wooden token, and muttering about everything from his uncle, to admirals, to the seasons. Katara actually worried for a minute that Zuko was not of sound mind to do what was needed of him, but when he had returned...

Her heart had beat even harder.

The firebender returned with a heavy confidence of spirit. His golden eyes practically _smoldered, _and both Toph and Sokka were already affected by his strange mood change. Zuko had ordered Sokka to "saddle up" and have Appa ready to leave again before the Water Tribe Warrior even realized that he'd just obeyed a command without complaining. Now, Sokka seemed to be a bit surly about that, but even his incessant nettling couldn't get a rise out of the prince. Not today.

Katara had managed to uncover a ratty old sandal in "Sokka's room" that she was quite sure did not belong to him (as it was far too large and had a Fire Nation insignia on it), but nothing else she could be _sure _belonged to someone else. Curiously, she had held the rather stinky old shoe out for Zuko and for some reason, he nodded with approval. "Pack it," he had stated simply.

Suki had gagged at the mere sight of the smelly object and thought that Zuko had gone mad.

Katara didn't think he was.

It was either that, or she rather liked this new and wilder, maverick-esque, take-charge Zuko.

A shiver ran up the waterbender's spine at the thought, obviously not caused by the wind.

As soon as they had crossed over the border and onto the massive Earth Kingdom continent, they flew toward the very first sign of civilization they could see. They searched from Appa and landed at times to let Toph have a go. With her amazing ability to read the land with her earthbending, she felt the presence of towns and villages, combing for some sign, some probability that the Avatar had been there. With no such luck, they pressed on as far as they could until fatigue and hunger had caught up with the posse, forcing them to land and stop at a nearby small town. A town obscure enough that it didn't even show on the map, nor did it have a name, a fact that the Fire Prince seemed to care little about.

Slowly, the Avatar search-party made their way to the heart of the town's center: a tavern. A lodging for travelers to spend their coins on every sort of vice known to man. Including food. Which Sokka was salivating for. This time however, Zuko made sure only to give just enough money for food, an act which greatly distressed and disappointed the other boy. Katara, however, had to admit that was a smart move on Zuko's part.

As soon as Zuko was sure he had paid the necessary funds to the proprietor, he turned his heel and signaled for the group to find a place to sit down.

"What about you?" Katara asked cautiously.

"I've got some questions that need answering."

"But-"

And with that, he walked away and disappeared into the motley crowd of drunks and gamblers.

So now the worried waterbender had little choice but to sit at a table with Sokka, Suki and Toph while biting idly at her fried rice as Toph moaned in delight about having "real food" again. She tried to shake off the image of Zuko leaning casually against the counter in front of the bartender and calling for a drink.

_Zuko, you jerk. You should at least tell me what's going on_, she scoffed, crossing her arms directly over her chest, sulking in a manner that was unfitting of Katara. _Did I really think his mysterious silence was enthralling just this morning? Now it's starting to get annoying...  
_

Plus, without Zuko's eerie and Zen-like determination to calm her, Katara was starting to feel the pressure she had been ignoring since Ember Island. It was almost as if her mind was unraveling right before her. Even her slight annoyance at the firebender couldn't keep the spiraling circle of thoughts out of her mind.

_Aang. _

_Aang. _

_Aang's missing. _

_Is he hurt?_

_Did he leave us? _

_Was it my fault?_

Just as Katara had given up on her lunch and pushed the food angrily away from her, Zuko returned. He dropped calmly into an empty chair beside her, a small smile traced upon his lips, something which Katara surely would have missed had she not been practicing how to read his well-concealed emotions of late. He kicked his feet up on the table and snatched her leftover out from Sokka's ever-hungry hands.

"Hey!" The Water Warrior protested.

"Zuko, that's kind of rude." Katara raised an eyebrow at this new found cockiness that Zuko displayed with much bravado.

"Good news?" Toph asked, drumming her toes on the ground as she swung her legs.

Zuko shrugged noncommittally. "Hopefully."

"What's _that _mean?" Sokka demanded, still eying Katara's leftovers angrily as Zuko wolfed them down.

Suki rolled her eyes at her boyfriend. "I take it you found what you were looking for?"

Zuko raised his eyebrow at her, as if impressed at the Kyoshi Warrior's deduction.

"I did," Zuko admitted. "Or rather, I found who I was looking for. An Informant. You can always find a rat that knows something. However, his sources might be a little... outdated. Our target moves pretty fast."

"You found Aang?" Sokka gasped.

"Not him," Zuko denied. "Not yet." He tipped up Katara's plate and gulped down the last of her meal. "We should get moving. If I know this person at all, we're going to be on a wild goose chase for the rest of the day."

Which is exactly what happened, or so Katara assumed. They stopped in three more Earth Kingdom towns, and after a short poke into the local bar, Zuko would emerge with a frown, swing up on Appa, and take off again. Night was fast approaching when they left their third town, and Zuko's steady calmness was slowly turning into a determined, sulky silence now. Suki was reminding him that Appa needed rest, though the sky bison seemed almost as determined to find Aang as Zuko was, and the Fire Prince eventually agreed to stop in the next village if he didn't find who he was looking for.

And Katara still couldn't figure out what the shoe was for.

* * *

"This is going to be troublesome. It's occupied."

"What?"

Suki gestured to the town bellow them, forcing Zuko to see where she pointed. "It's occupied," she repeated. "See the red flag there, and the soldiers over there, and the fire-flakes stand?" As the Kyoshi Warrior carefully pointed them out offhandedly, Katara's eyes managed to catch each of these in the fading light. "This Earth Kingdom village is crawling with Fire Nation soldiers."

Just then, a loud burst of singing came from a group of staggering men. Zuko frowned as the off-key Fire Nation Anthem drifted up to them, and Katara was beginning to pick up more and more from the Fire Nation citizens. Most of them drunk, all were cheering. "What's got them so happy?" she asked.

"Don't know," Zuko answered, his frown deepening even more. "But it _definitely_ can't be good."

"You don't think they know about-"

"No." Zuko's tone cut over Katara's voice sharply. "I'm sure they don't know anything about Aang. Even if he _had _been captured, I doubt news of it would have traveled this fast."

Katara felt something in her chest unclench. Sokka, however, crossed his arms suspiciously. "I don't know... and I don't like it. Maybe we should just skip this town, Zuko, and go on to the next one."

Zuko didn't answer. His good eye was almost as narrow as his scared one as he glowered down at the village, searching.

"Zuko!" Sokka prompted again, and the Prince started slightly. "Let's skip this town. It's getting too dangerous."

"No," Zuko said simply. "She's here. I know it."

"Here?!" Sokka protested.

"Who?" Toph asked.

"_She_?!" Katara bit out before flustering.

Zuko snorted. "Yes." That didn't really answer much, but it was obviously all they were going to get.

Okay, this mysterious confidence wasn't such a great thing... Katara was already beginning to miss the hot-tempered, short-fused Zuko.

Zuko landed them near a bunch of trees on the edge of town and they scrambled off. He patted Appa's head as the sky bison flopped wearily to the ground. "Good boy," he praised the bison so seriously, much like a prince would praise his prized war horse, and Katara almost smiled at the hilarity of the scene. "Hide here until we get back," he ordered it. Appa gave a warbling grunt, seeming to understand. "We'll find him," Zuko promised, and patted the gigantic head awkwardly.

"Zuko," Sokka insisted again, "shouldn't we at least change? We can't just waltz into a village crawling with Fire Nation soldiers in these!" He gestured at his Water Tribe clothing. "That's like putting chum on us for the Onagi to eat."

"It'll be fine." Zuko answered quickly. "This is still an Earth Kingdom town. There are a lot of refugees here. Plus, you're forgetting that without Aang, you guys are just travelers. Hardly recognizable, unless someone is specifically searching for you."

"Maybe," Sokka grumbled. "But you're not. Weren't you the one telling me this whole time that you can't go out among Fire Nation people because you'd be recognized?" Zuko flinched slightly. "Now you want to go into an entire village filled with soldiers? Not Fire Nation citizens, Zuko. Soldiers."

"There's not really a choice, Sokka." Zuko ran a hand through his hair, revealing his scar for a moment before the long locks covered it again. "We have to find Aang."

"I know that!" Sokka snapped back. "Look, Zuko, just tell me what we're looking for. I'll go-"

"I don't think she'll talk to anyone but me." Zuko answered flatly.

Katara felt that strange bristling feeling within her again. _Who is this mystery woman? And why are we looking so hard for her anyway? _

"I'll just have to be careful."

Sokka considered this for a moment, and then shook his head. "No."

"What?" Zuko almost gaped.

"I said, no. You're not going by yourself while we wait across the street or back here with Appa. You said it yourself, the rest of us just look like travelers. We're not waiting outside this time. The more of us there are, the less of a chance you'd be recognized, and the more chances we have of escaping if you are." Zuko scowled. "It's a sound strategy!" Sokka insisted. "We're going with you."

"Sound?!" Zuko shot back. "You think taking four-" He clicked his tongue in a scowling manner before sighing, desperately trying to command that impetuous streak he had. "Fine, okay. Just try not to make a scene."

With that, Zuko turned and started to stride straight into town. He turned into the first raucous bar he saw, and Katara unconsciously reached out to snag his arm as she passed the bouncer, remembering the leering look from the last one they had encountered, the filthy pervert. Whether Zuko could feel her tight grip on his arm or that he was embarrassed by it, she could not tell. The Fire Prince's face was hard, stern, and unfeeling. This bouncer watched them suspiciously, as if sizing up Zuko and Sokka, obviously dismissing Katara and Suki to be their "women." Katara wasn't sure if she should be angry at the mere notion that she'd been lumped together with Zuko like an object or to be embarrassed by the fact that it was obviously the only way she was going to get in. His eyes passed over Zuko acceptably, his scar obviously hidden from the bouncer by the angle, and when Suki smirked at him in a somewhat rude manner he also let her and Sokka pass through without harassment. But then he stopped dead when his gaze came to tiny earthbender of the party. "Oh no you don't, missy," he caught her, "I'm 'fraid tonight's not a good one for children."

Toph's eyebrows twitched angrily, and Zuko sighed as he waved a hand. Sensing the firebender's gesture through the vibrations he emitted, Toph took this for permission and she grinned as she cracked her knuckles, and moments later the gigantic bouncer was dangling from the roof.

Toph ascended the stairs to join them quickly when she suddenly stopped with a frown. Zuko reached out and snatched her wrist with his free hand, Katara still holding his left, as the Bei Fong heiress huffed. "Wooden floors," she grumbled, "What self-respecting, Earth Kingdom architect would design a building with wooden floors?"

"Occupied village, remember? It's so that no one can earthbend," Suki stated reasonably, grabbing Sokka's arm as she shoved the door open and strode into the bar.

"Stay close," Zuko whispered to Katara and Toph before following.

Loud, roaring voices greeted Katara's ears, and the smell of booze, sweat, and men filled the air with a musky stench. A bit overwhelmed, Katara pulled closer to Zuko as she watched the waitresses swat at men who pinched their bottoms and at the few women at the bar bat their eyelashes at the wealthier looking patrons. All around her, men were roaring and speaking in booming voices – mostly soldiers– and clanking tankards together. A few grumpy looking Earth Kingdom villagers were huddled in a corner, while some mingled with the Fire Nation men. But what stood out the most were the red banners that had a strange insignia, not at all similar to any previous Fire Nation symbol. The whole bar was decorated with them. "What are those?" Sokka asked, indicating to them. "They look like wings..."

Zuko was frowning. "That... I've never seen it before." He glanced around. "You and Suki, see if anyone can tell us about the banners. We'll look for information on our target."

"Leave it to us." Sokka agreed.

Zuko ushered Katara and Toph to a nearby table and gestured with his hands for them to stay incognito. The waterbender was about to protest, but then she noticed all the leering looks from the patrons and clamped her mouth shut. _We're not supposed to make a scene,_ she reminded herself.

She shook her head angrily, reminding herself to trust in Zuko. The Fire Prince casually made his way through the room when he flipped a passing waitress a coin and asked her to bring him a drink and some water for his guests. This was something she must have found amusing as she giggled and moved off to do so. _Hussy,_ Katara caught herself thinking as the girl swung her hips without discretion. Zuko, however, was keeping his face turned away from the center of the room where the loud soldiers were. Instead, he moved to address the Earth Kingdom men, who would be less likely to recognize his scar.

Katara realized she was glaring at them until the presence of the waitress shook her back to reality as the woman dropped the pitcher of water and porcelain cups on her table with a bang. Toph gave a startled squeak only to find herself cursing moments later, obviously already missing her radar like vision. Katara preoccupied herself by pouring them both some water but somehow the waitress's shameless flirting with Zuko was getting on her nerve as she tried to avoid looking directly at the floozy. _I'm not... jealous,_ she told herself stiffly as she watched with anticipation Zuko's nonchalant reaction at receiving his drink from the smiling waitress.

"Jealous?" Toph asked suddenly.

"No!" Katara flushed. "I mean, um... of what?"

"How should I know?" Toph answered back. "I'm blind as a wolf-bat in here."

"Then why'd you say it?" Katara snapped.

"You're grinding your teeth," Toph answered with a shrug. "That's what you do when you're jealous."

Katara opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, a hefty man dropped into the open seat at their table with a thud. "Hel...*hick*...'Lo ladies," he grinned drunkenly, pulling his Fire Nation helm off his head. "Mind if I sit here?"

"Actually-" Toph started, but Katara cut her off.

"Not at all," she insisted, which caused the man to grin widely.

"Aren't you two a bit... young... to be in a place like this?" he noted, squinting at them as if just noticing Toph was a child.

"That's what the bouncer said," Toph grinned. "Now he's on the roof."

The man roared with laughter as if he had just heard the most absurd joke in the world, and Katara noticed that the noise he made had caused Zuko some concern. The firebender shot back a look in their direction with what she might have called his 'not-so-pleased' face. He might as well have said, "_What did I say about keeping a low profile?"_ aloud. Nevertheless, he must have realized Katara and Toph were no longer alone. _Ha! _she thought triumphantly. True, Zuko had a point about the... company here... but she was getting sick and tired of this game he was playing. Plus, she really didn't like the way that waitress was getting so familiar with him. Katara wanted just a little payback. If this drunk was going to play along, then that was even better.

"So, are you... ladies from out of town, then?" the man asked, his eyes taking in Katara's strange clothes – or, at least, she hoped it was her clothes.

"I am," Katara admitted. She smiled pleasantly, despite the man's stench, and whispered in a conspiratorial manner, "It's my first time in an Earth Kingdom tavern."

"Obviously," Toph grumbled, rolling her eyes.

The man laughed again. "She's a feisty one, ain't she?" he surmised, jabbing a finger at Toph, who grinned back wickedly. "No worries though. It's probably my last time in an Earth Kingdom bar – or at least, this one."

Katara frowned. "Why? Aren't you stationed here?"

"Oh, aye, love," the man answered grinning. "But we're pulling out. Tomorrow morning, we're leaving this place."

"Why would you leave?" Toph asked with a frown. "I would imagine the Fire Nation worked pretty hard to occupy a town this deep in the Earth Kingdom."

"The higher-ups didn't say," the man burped. "Just that we're to pull out of the colonies tomorrow."

"All the colonies?" Toph asked, agape. "Why?"

"Said I didn't know, didn't I?" The man glared at her, but it went unnoticed by Toph's blind eyes. "We just got the orders today, and you can't rightly ask a Fire Hawk 'why,' now, can you?"

"So," Katara pushed again, "all the colonies?" The man frowned, so she batted her eyes.

"Ah..." he stammered. "Probably?"

Ah, the power of feminine wiles.

"Probably?" She raised an eyebrow and smiled in her best seductive imitation. "What does 'probably' mean?"

He grinned that gigantic stupid smile again. "I don't know."

Frustrated, Katara started to turn away, but the man grabbed her wrist. "I'll ask my commander, if you'd like," he offered, and she turned back suspiciously. Toph was frowning deeply. "'Course, if I'mma bug him, I could get in trouble..."

"Then why offer?" Katara wondered out loud.

His grin was back. "You could make it worth my while, I'll bet."

Katara snatched her hand back immediately. "No thank you."

The man lazily caught her arm once more.

"You've got beau... beau... pretty eyes."

"I _said_ no thank you." Katara's soft brow contorted and her eyes glared a disgusted look. The waterbender pulled her arm free with a serious tug, only to find the man reaching out for her for the third time. She stood quickly, her chair scraping across the floor as she stepped out of his reach.

"She said hands off, ugly!" Toph barked, but her warning was ignored. The man most likely dismissed the threat from a blind twelve year old girl.

The drunken soldier pressed on, "Hey, c'mon pretty girl. Don't... Don't be like that."

He stood and stepped towards her imploringly. Katara was just about ready uncork the lid from her waterskin when suddenly there was a resounding crash, a blur of motion, and a strangled grunt. A moment later, Zuko stood in front of her, clenching a closed right fist, with the soldier falling flat across a broken table, surrounded by spilled and broken pitchers that had been on it. Toph was on her feet, and most of the patrons in the bar were looking at them with suspicion, drunken faces trying to piece together the scene.

Zuko scowled. "Let's go."

"But-"

"Now."

Realizing that now might not be the best time to explain herself, especially as Zuko wouldn't likely hear it, she nodded in frustrated acceptance. Zuko snatched up Toph's wrist and herded Katara towards the door.

Suki and Sokka caught onto their departure, as both bid short farewells to the patrons they were talking to and went after their comrades. The bouncer, who had just finished climbing down the roof found himself being hurled back up by stone and earth as Zuko briskly walked passed with Toph and Katara in tow; his screaming would have made for some giggles had the Fire Prince been in a lighter mood. The minute they were out of sight of the tavern, Zuko let loose his anger as he let go of both the girls' hands. "What was that?!" Zuko berated Katara. "Are you trying to get into trouble?!"

"No, but I-"

"What were you doing with that drunk?"

"What was I doing-"

"Yes! He was obviously coming on to you! What were you doing, humoring him?!"

"I-" Deep down, she realized the stupid reason she let that man get close to her in the first place. _I was just trying to get you to pay attention_... Embarrassed by the foolishness of her actions, Katara hid her reasoning and snarled back at Zuko. "It's not like I'm helpless, Zuko! I can handle myself."

"What's going on?" Sokka asked as he arrived at the scene.

"If I were you, I wouldn't want to be caught in the middle of this lover's spat," Toph warned him lightly.

"Lovers?!" Sokka gaped.

"Relax. It's a figure of speech," The little earthbender lied casually.

But Zuko ignored that and turned to Sokka. "You see now?" he snapped, "This is why I didn't want to bring you guys."

Fortunately, Sokka waved Zuko off, snorting with laughter. "Zuko, she _can _handle herself, or did you forget the entire prison of blood-thirsty, murdering criminals she converted in a matter of days?"

Zuko snarled. "That's not the point!"

But Katara was beaming at her brother as the Water Tribesman continued. "You're right," Sokka conceded. "The point, the entire reason we went in there, is Aang. So, did you find out anything?"

Zuko ground his teeth together loudly. "This conversation is not over, Katara... but yes." He faced Sokka with the last, letting those simmering eyes linger over Katara's for barely a moment too long - Katara hoped no one noticed. But then Zuko was reporting his own finds, and the thought of hiding their... fling?... from her brother faded immediately before her need to find Aang. "She's at the tavern across town. There are mostly Earth Kingdom men over there. Men who are much less... volatile."

"Perfect," Sokka agreed. "Let's go."

The barely contained rage on Zuko's face showed through his throbbing fists, but the boy soldiered on, walking several paces ahead of the group.

Looking at the Fire Prince's strong back, Katara couldn't help but feel a tinge of guilt for actually insinuating and entertaining the notion of doing that to Zuko. _What is wrong with me? I really shouldn't have done that but... that woman was... and Zuko..._

She forcibly shoved the thoughts out of her mind. Finally an epiphany occurred to the young waterbender. Was Toph right? Was she actually, truly, genuinely... jealous?

Before Katara could figure out her thoughts, Suki stated something out loud which brought her out of her train of thought.

"So, Sokka and I found out what those banners were for." The Kyoshi Warrior kept Zuko's stride in check as the group made their way around town, taking only the routes that had the least number of people in their path.

Zuko took a deep breath as if to control himself. "Well?"

"It's the royal emblem of the Phoenix King."

Zuko gaped at her. "Phoenix King?" he repeated. "Who's that? Some new Earth Kingdom ruler?"

"With _red _banners?" Suki's tone made it clear she doubted that.

Toph also nodded her head in a rare agreement with the Kyoshi native. "Trust me, that's not an Earth Kingdom title. I'd know."

Zuko frowned. "I know every ruler in the remaining Three Kingdoms, by name and position. There is no such title. So, just who is this Phoenix King?"

Suki shifted uncomfortably. "Apparently, your father."

Zuko snorted. "My _father _is the Fire Lord."

"Not anymore." Suki crossed her arms, causing Sokka to drop her hand, and nodded her head at her boyfriend.

The Water Tribesman picked up where she left off. "It seems that in order to celebrate his 'conquest' of the entire world, Ozai has deemed it necessary to name himself Phoenix King," the boy explained. "The Fire Lord only rules the Fire Nation. The Phoenix King, apparently, controls the entire world."

"But he hasn't defeated the North Pole yet," Toph frowned. "Or Kyoshi Island. Or a good bit of the Earth Kingdom! How can he call himself the ruler of the world?!" It sounded almost like a plea to remind her they hadn't lost yet, that there were some places still safe.

"His plan," Zuko spat out, more to himself then the group. "Counting your chicken-hawks before they hatch, huh, father? That sounds just like him," he grumbled to no one in particular. When he noticed that his friends weren't following he took a more direct root. "Remember what he's going to do when the comet comes?"

Katara gasped as she pieced together Zuko's clue. "That's why he's pulling all the soldiers out!"

"What?" Sokka and Zuko asked in unison.

"That man I was talking to in the tavern," Katara explained. "He's a Fire Nation soldier stationed here, and he said they were being pulled out tomorrow, and that he thought it might be more than just this village, that it might be soldiers in all the Earth Kingdom Colonies."

"He's really going to do it then?" Toph whispered, a strange, airy tone in her voice. "He's going to burn the entire Earth Kingdom?"

"Looks like it," Sokka snarled. "The bastard."

There was only silence. After a few minutes, Zuko spoke out his concern. "So, no more Fire Lord?" he asked, as if imagining such a thing was nearly impossible.

"Not until Sozin's Comet." Sokka answered. "He's crowning Azula to be Fire Lord in his stead."

"Don't you mean, _Fire Lady_?" Toph corrected sarcastically.

"Nope." Sokka tried for a grim smile, despite the sound of Zuko's teeth grinding together. "Apparently she's going by Fire Lord, despite her gender."

"Knowing her, she would," Zuko grumbled. He turned to face them. "We have to stop this."

"What?" Sokka blinked. "Of course we do! That's why we're trying to find Aang! Or did you forget why you changed sides in the first place?"

"No," Zuko insisted. "I mean, we really _have _to stop this _now_. If... If we don't find Aang... If my plan doesn't work... We're running out of time. Even if we don't find Aang, we can't let this happen. I can't let this happen. We have to stop it, with or without the Avatar."

"Zuko," Katara started, not yet willing to face the fact that they might not find Aang. "Aang-"

The moment his name left her lips, Zuko spun on his heel again. "I know," he said harshly, over his shoulder. "We'll find him. The tavern's this way."

It was a much more subdued group that opened the door to the second bar of the night. There was no bouncer here, but inside was a much more different sight. The overall decor was cleaner, simpler, and except for a single raised platform, the building was almost entirely made of stone, including the floor, which brought a smile upon Toph's face. But the scene was completely a contradiction of the patrons who populated the tavern.

Most of the men were Earth Kingdom and they were all huddled around the corners of the tavern. There were no waitresses serving drinks here, just loud men cheering as they watched the antics at the center of the pub. There, the only woman in the building was drinking tea, as if completely unaware of all the loud shouting going on around her. Something about her seemed... striking.

"So, what's the plan this time?" Sokka asked. "Or are you finally going to tell us the big picture?"

"This is it." Zuko shrugged as if that said it all. "This is the plan."

"What is?" Sokka frowned. "This tavern?"

Zuko nodded.

"And the reason why you've brought us to this seedy Earth Kingdom tavern is what now?" Katara insisted.

Zuko's voice grated as he raised a finger to point at the woman in the center of the cheering. "Her. June."

Katara followed his finger that pointed to the woman named June, who noticed the newly arrived party and turned towards her slightly. But before Katara had a chance to take a good look at her, a man from the Earth Kingdom rabble yelled and charged straight for the girl with fists flying. Without getting up from her seat, June uncrossed her legs and caught his arm just below the elbow. Twisting so that her legs crossed the other way, she broke his attack and smashed the man into the floor, licking the tea off her lips nonchalantly.

"Oh yeah!" Sokka exclaimed, reminding Katara instantly why the woman looked familiar. "That's the weird bounty hunter chick. The one with the giant mole."

"Mole?" Suki asked, as another man charged at the bounty hunter. This time, the woman was forced to stand and vacate her seat, easily sidestepping the second man's attack and kicking the body of the first man between them. The second attacker slammed into the table trying to avoid the first guy, and the table cracked as he stumbled, spilling the tea pot. "But her skin is flawless," the Kyoshi Warrior noted offhandly, commenting on bounty hunter's striking beauty.

"No!" Sokka corrected as June continued evading the two men. She soon had both the Earth Kingdom fighters stumbling around her, and she was still holding her cup of tea, virtually un-spilled. "She has this giant mole-creature that she rides around on."

"The Shirshu," Zuko provided, as the second man increased his attacks to such a speed that June was forced to fall back a step, tossing her teacup straight up into the air and engaging in the brawl whole-heartedly now. "It's the only animal that can track Aang's scent anywhere in the world. The only shot we have of finding him."

The man was sent flying over June's shoulders, and she snatched the teacup out of the air as it fell back down, managing to keep most of the liquid inside it. The music ended abruptly at the same time while the men roared with cheers and whistles. Somehow it seemed to Katara as if it had gotten colder. This woman was their last hope?

"Oh, now I get it!" Sokka exclaimed. "You're going to track Aang by scent! That way it doesn't matter if he was kidnapped, got lost, or just ran away. We can find him anywhere!"

"And fast," Zuko added hopefully. "Assuming we can convince her help us."

As the defeated men slumped against the wall, thrown head-over-heels across a table in the corner, June calmly took a long drink of her tea and raised a kohl-lined eye to the newcomers. Toph smiled widely. "I don't know who this June lady is," she stated with her frank attitude, "but I like her style!"

Zuko snorted. "You would."

"Well, you shouldn't," Sokka snapped, to which Toph responded by elbowing him. "Hey!" he growled at the earthbender. "She's not all she's cracked up to be, okay? Besides... She helped you attack us before," he added accusingly to Zuko.

"Yup," The Fire Prince agreed sarcastically. "Back in the good old days."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Katara snapped.

"You'll see..."

Toph made a face. "Argh, she's sitting on the wooden part of the room! I can't make a clear picture of what she looks like!" Toph groaned as she followed Zuko and the rest over to the new table June had claimed, snatching Sokka's arm hastily as she did.

"June," Zuko greeted formally.

She rolled her eyes, as if she _knew _he was there for her already. Though, in hindsight, it was probably a good assumption to make, considering they had walked in the door and stared at her until she sat down. "Oh great," she groaned. "It's Prince-Pouty." Toph snickered from Sokka's side, though Zuko ignored her, his face set in that unhappy mask. "Where's your creepy grandpa?"

"He's my uncle," Zuko clarified simply, and Katara found herself watching his face carefully, trying to see through the strange, solemn mask he had forced on the minute Iroh intered the conversation. "And he's not here." A moment of silence followed and Katara could tell the comment had hurt Zuko a bit, but only by noticing the slightest hint of regret in his voice when he admitted his uncle was gone.

June seemed to pick up on it too and she swirled her tea, changing the subject. "I see you worked things out with your girlfriend." she said instead.

Katara's face went bright red and she immediately stopped staring at Zuko's face. Her cheeks flushed with a pinkish hue that she prayed did not show. Her lips stammered as she tried to deny the offhand comment.

"I'm not his girlfriend!"

"She's not my girlfriend!"

Both she and Zuko spat out the comment in awkward unison.

For a split second both of their eyes met as if questioning just what was being denied, then simultaneous darted towards Sokka and back to June. They knew it was not completely a lie, but then again, they were not ready to fully define their relationship.

Still...

A part of Katara was insulted they had to deny June's claim.

"Okay, okay, sheesh!" June relented as both Katara and Zuko turned their withering, scarlet-faced glares at her. "I was only teasing." She stared down at her nearly empty teacup as if hoping it would somehow refill itself. Zuko didn't take the hint, and Katara was pretty sure it was intentional from her comment. "So, what do you want?" she asked instead.

"I need your help finding the Avatar," Zuko admitted, more humbly than Katara ever thought possible.

"The Avatar!" June exclaimed. "Not that again. Doesn't that card get old with you, Zuko?"

"This time it's important." Zuko insisted, and Katara could see he was still flustered as well, he was just hiding it better than her. She tried to force her own blush away. "It's a matter of life and death," the Fire Prince stated with as much reverence as he could.

"Humph," June snorted, turning away to drown her teacup. "Doesn't sound too fun."

It was then that Zuko's temper got the better of him once more. "Does the end of the world sound like more fun?" he shouted, balling his fists up under her nose, and she froze, cup on her lips, as the music cut out again so that everyone could stare at the shouting prince. _So much for controlling his anger better, _Katara thought as Zuko snapped. "This isn't a joke!" he added angrily.

June glanced around behind them. "You sure this is a good place to have a discussion about it?" she asked calmly. "I don't think they like your friends."

Indeed, there were whispers around the bar as people pointed, but Katara thought that "don't like" was just putting it lightly. A few of the men were sneering at herself and Suki, but even more were whispering and pointing at either Toph or Zuko.

"What?" Toph asked, glancing blindly around the room. "Why's it so quiet?"

"They're staring at you," Sokka whispered dramatically. "And I don't think it's the friendly kind. Maybe you got a booger in your nose."

Toph trudged heavily on his foot as one of the men approached them. This man was clearly meant to be intimidating by his massive built and the scars that that showed proudly upon his forearms. "You a friend of theirs, June?" he asked, glancing between the teenage newcomers and the bounty hunter.

"You could say that," June answered, standing from her seat in a fluid motion. "Got a problem?"

"Quite a few," the man grumbled back. "I won't have troublemakers like you in my establishment, nor will I have children."

"Children?!" Toph protested.

"Relax, Ren, it's nothing to get worked up about. We were just having a little fun, that's all," June calmly explained as Suki quickly slapped a hand over Toph's mouth.

"I said, _leave_. Every night you come in here, something always ends up broken. And you always say to put it on your tab. Well, missy, you haven't paid your tab in months."

"What's that supposed to mean?" June asked defensively.

"What I'm saying is how are you going to pay for all that? And this! You've bought another round for everyone here!"

"I said I'll pay for it-"

"No! You're paying up tonight or you're going to have to answer to some of my boys here!"

June sighed as she casually flipped her raven hair behind her. Finally she set her sights upon Zuko's frame.

"Tell you what, Prince," June started, and the burly bartender raised an eyebrow upon hearing the foreign title. "I'll... 'entertain' that notion, providing that you can entertain me."

Katara glanced at Zuko, surprised to see that he was more than willing to listen. "What do you have in mind?" the taller young man replied.

"This whole stinking place has been getting on my last few nerves. I've been harassed and hooted and hollered at for as long as I've been here. I try to do it the moral way, but I'm sick and tired of having to buy everyone rounds just so they will leave me in peace. "

"And? " Zuko urged her to go on.

"Its time for some pay back. You hear me?" June smiled wickedly, upon which her strikingly beautiful face reminded him of how dangerous this woman could be.

The gang slowly caught on as to what June's request was and looked to Zuko, hoping to see if he felt the same way as they did.

"We're not your enforcers, June," Zuko answered back with a steely gaze.

"Nor are we bullies," Sokka agreed as he stepped up to back the firebender.

"...Hmmm, that's too bad." June pursed her lips as if the bounty hunter knew already what their answer was going to be, she shrugged casually. Suddenly she pointed to a group of men playing Pai Sho across from them. "You there! Goon Squad! I know for a fact you've been itching for a fight with me every since you lost all your money to me last night. Well, this handsome fellow right here..." She walked and touched Sokka's arm sensually, leaving the Water Tribe boy confused. "He says you're all nothing but losers and morons for losing to a girl like you just did!"

"WHAT?!" The three stood up in their seat.

"I didn't say that! I didn't say that right, Suki?" Sokka looked to his girlfriend for some much needed advice, but the Kyoshi Warrior looked just about as surprised as he was.

"And you, creepy-looking guy!" the raven haired woman continued her verbal assault, pointing to another bar patron. "You've been eying this pretty young girl here since she walked in." She smiled and grinned at Katara, who had a look of surprise and disgust upon her face. "Too bad, buddy. She said she doesn't go for creepy old men with beer guts like you."

Katara wanted to respond but she was left speechless.

"Who does that bitch think she is?!" The accused man rose to his feet, as his eyes glazed over at Katara.

"Bitch?!" The waterbender shook with anger.

"June what do you think you're-"

Before Zuko could stop her, June smirked one last time before shouting to everyone in the crowd, pointing her index finger high in the air. "Hey, all of you slimy Earth Kingdom sons of bitches! Do you even know who the hell this boy is?!"

"June!!!"

The bounty hunter smiled as her next words lit the final fuse that would ignite the chaos she had planned. "You're in the presence of royalty, people! The Crown Prince of the Fire Nation, Zuko himself!"

At the mention of his name, all eyes were set straight at the prince. His comrades began huddling close to him as Zuko's face went red beneath his scar. Katara didn't stop to deduce if it was anger or humiliation this time.

"That's not good," Sokka joked weakly as his eyes caught the three Pai Sho-playing men from earlier making their way toward them. "Not good at all."

"We can take 'em." Toph side-stepped onto a stone edge where she could stand her ground, now ready to fend herself from any attack.

Suddenly the three men made a break for it, trying to tackle Sokka to the ground, only to be tripped by the Water Tribe Warrior as he pulled the scabbard of his space sword from behind him and spun the concealed weapon at their feet. "Do we really have to do this?" he groaned.

But those three weren't the only ones moving. Behind them, someone shouted with such ferocity into the air that it became the signal to unleash hell upon the tavern. "BAR! ROOM! BRAWLLL!!!!!!!!"

"Apparently, we do." Sokka sighed as he prepared to defend himself.

Fists and cups flew casually in the air as the rowdy room quickly escalated into a battleground. Toph was laughing visciously behind them as the rest of the warriors launched into action.

Zuko jumped and seemed to fly in the air, vaulting a table connecting his split kick to the faces of two bar drunks and landed casually on the floor. Suki dodged and weaved through the clumsy lunge one man attempted upon her, before spinning behind him and jamming her elbows into his spine. Katara let loose her waterbending prowess as she flicked out her fingers. She commanded the water to solidify and shoot out from her canteens as deadly ice needles, and just as preciece. They thudded into the wall, pinning four helpless men by their clothes, and she couldn't help but feel the move was a bit reminiscent of the projectile specialist, Mai.

Toph was still enjoying the thrill of the whole situation as each jab of her arms, which were five times larger than normal thanks to her feat of encasing them in rock and earth, pulverized and sent men flying in all sorts of directions as if they were mere toys. Finally, someone had the gall to throw a glass cup straight towards the blind earthbender, when at the last second a gleam and a flash rendered the cup neatly sliced in two, Sokka smirking beside the petite girl, obsidian sword in hand.

Fire exploded, water surged, earth trembled, and the wailing battle cries of a pubescent Water Tribe warrior echoed throughout the room. The yelling and screaming for vengeance and retribution of bar patrons soon turned into yelling and screaming from pain and anguish as the brawl continued, and yet the circle the Avatar posse had positioned themselves in remained impenetrable.

It wasn't long until all that remained of the place were shattered cups, splintered tables and chairs, and broken men laying sprawled everywhere upon the ground. The Avatar gang remained standing, tall and triumphant, though a little annoyed and windblown. Well, except for Toph.

"Who wants some?! Huh?!! Who wants some more from the Blind Bandit?!" The blind girl taunted out loud. When only moans and groans answered her challenge, the young, blind eathbender smirked smugly. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

Only the sound of laughter and a pair of clapping hands echoed throughout the remnants of the trashed tavern.

"Oh my, that was quite a show," June remarked with glee.

The bounty hunter began to walk toward them calmly, only to find that one man was starting to rise to his feet. The situation was quickly remedied as she brought a cup to the back of his head and struck him with it, causing the man to slump back down on the ground.

Zuko shot the woman a hard-worn look. "Is this what you really wanted?"

"No, I want a house built upon the clouds so I can live happily ever after," June answered with heavy sarcasm. "Lighten up, boy; you only live once. And you can't say you've lived to the fullest without experiencing a bar fight at _least_ once in your life."

"I could have done without that," Sokka sighed as he slid his sword back into its sheathed slumber.

"Zuko, can you really trust her?" Katara eyed the woman with renewed suspicion. "She just tried to sell you out!"

"I'm with Katara on this one, Zuko," Suki agreed, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Believe me, if I had wanted to sell him out, you all would have known," June stated casually. "Well, you did fulfill your end of the bargain, as that was an impressive show. So I might as well listen to what you've got to say. First things first." She eyed all the casualties around the room. "We might want to skedaddle. I'm pretty sure the local militia and Fire Nation soldiers are not so plastered as to not have noticed this commotion. You can fill me in on this 'end of the world' thing while we scram."

* * *

Zuko felt like banging his head the way Sokka often did as he watched the Shirshu and the Sky Bison snarl at each other. _That's just how I feel,_ he agreed with Appa. _But we don't have a choice. We've got to find Aang, or else stop this whole mess ourselves... _"Stop that," he chastised the beast. "She's going to help us find Aang."

At his master's name, Appa immediately stopped growling, and then placed a big wet lick upon the Shirshu's blind face, a gesture that, fortunately, the mole's paralysis-inducing tongue didn't return.

"Oh, Ny-laaa!" June called lovingly as she pulled a huge hunk of meat out of her bag. She tossed it in the air and the beast caught it with sharp fangs, devouring it whole. "There's a good girl. Who's my little snuffly-wuffly?" she asked, petting the blind, furry head.

"Graagha," the Shirshu spat, making June spin out of the way of her dangerous, snapping tongue.

"Whoa!" June chastised her pet, dodging and forcing the big jaws closed. Zuko stepped backa few feet cautiously. "Careful there. This guy hasn't paid me yet."

The Shirshu let out a disconsolate grumble and June stroked her head again playfully. "Speaking of payment," she added, and Zuko tossed the entire money bag Admiral Chan had given him at her feet without pause. Sokka made a strangled noise at the loss of the huge pouch of gold. June just kicked it up into her hands and counted the coins idly. "Hmm... Hardly enough for my services, Prince." Upon her lips, his title twisted into a mockery.

"There'll be more where that came from if you can help," Zuko guaranteed, though he knew the promise was empty unless they somehow stopped his father.

Unfortunately, June seemed to realize that too. "You mean, if you ever get you own hands on more," she stated simply, and Zuko growled. "So, you want me to wait to be paid in full until after you win your little war, eh? You should know I don't go for this bureaucratic 'I owe you' bullshit."

"How greedy are you?!" Zuko snarled, before controlling himself. "I might have just saved your life by telling you all of this!" he countered.

"Well, the news that this town and most of the Earth Kingdom will be up in flames in a few days is certainly priceless, however..."

"Fine." Zuko snatched the purse back from her hands. "I'll just tell the Fire Lord to aim for you when he gets here."

June's red painted lips twitched in amusement. "I didn't say no."

Zuko felt he won a slight victory over the bounty hunter, but he placed the thought aside quickly enough. The woman was still holding out for something. "What do you want?" he asked bluntly.

"Hmm... Property," she decided, and Zuko blinked. "I want a home in the Fire Nation Capital, Ember Island, Ba Sing Se, and Omashu– excuse me, New Ozai. The works. Truth is, I wasn't completely being sarcastic back there. I'm tired of having to crash at crappy inns with crappy food and crappy tea. And when I say 'home,' I mean something worthy of me. A palace might be a nice start."

"I never pictured you to be the 'home-sweet-home' type." Zuko's eyes narrowed with doubt.

"Well, I never pictured you to be the 'rebelling-against-parental-authority' type either," June countered sarcastically.

"I'm an exiled ex-Prince of Fire," Zuko snarled. "What makes you think I can wrangle you property anywhere?"

"Deal," Toph said suddenly, sticking her hand out to offer an agreement. "If Zuko can manage the Capital and Ember Island, I can handle the rest."

"Toph what are you-"

"_When_ we _win_ the war, you can worry about that later," The petite girl spoke with such brimming confidence that Zuko really had no choice but to comply, nodding begrudgingly at her.

Toph turned and focused her attention in June's direction once more. "You do realize though, that this is a gamble? If we win the war, you'll come out on top, but if we lose..."

"I walk away with nothing but this measly bag of gold in exchange for risking my life," June finished for her. "I like a good bet." She shook Toph's hand in agreement. "Always good doing business with a bandit, or should I say a Bei Fong?"

"Take your pick," Toph waved her off. "I also go by 'The Runaway' nowadays. But I'm sure you already knew that."

"Are you sure?" Zuko asked, frowning at the shorter girl.

"Please," Toph snorted. "If Father can't manage that much, Aang will just have to ask the Earth Kings himself. I'm sure that Ba Sing Se is in the bag, and apparently he and the Mad King Bumi are old friends."

"Then my gamble is double safe," June agreed. "Consider me to be at your service." She bowed deeply to the Fire Prince and Earth Noblewoman before quirking a well-defined brow. "What's the plan?"

"One thing only. The Avatar," Zuko said. "If you can find him for us, you're done."

"Okay," she agreed, waving her hand impatiently. "So, who's got something with the Avatar's scent on it?"

Zuko noticed Katara was glaring at the bounty hunter, for reasons he did not know. Probably the brawl. However, the waterbender climbed into Appa's saddle helpfully, her thoughts for Aang obviously overpowering her dislike for the woman who had once hunted her. "I have Aang's staff," she offered after a moment.

"Does he use it a lot?" June asked, fiddling with the cold metal.

"Absolutely," Katara insisted.

June held the thing out to Nyla. The beast sniffed at it a moment, then turned its head up to taste the air. "She's got his smell," June admitted, handing the staff back to Katara as the Shirshu continued to paw at nothing. The beast circled the clearing a few times, obviously detecting Aang's sent on a few other things, like Appa, his pack, even on Katara, and separating out those scents from the one that might tell him where Aang was at the moment. June frowned. "Come on, girl," she prompted.

But Nyla just sniffed the air a few more times before lying down, covering her nose with her paws in a dejected manner. June blinked a few times, surprised, but Zuko was just put out. "Well, what does that mean?" he demanded.

"It means your friend is gone," June concluded, patting Nyla for her effort.

"We_ know_ he's gone," Toph stated obviously. "That's why we're trying to find him."

"No, I mean, he's 'gone' gone. He doesn't exist."

"What!" Suki protested. "That's ridiculous."

"Yeah!" Sokka agreed. "What do you mean, 'Aang doesn't exist?'"

"People don't just stop 'existing,' right?" The Kyoshi Warrior added, glancing around at her other quiet companions.

"Well, maybe," Katara considered, "I mean... That one time Sokka went to the Spirit World, he... he actually disappeared. Just... gone. Not like when Aang meditates and goes there, but like Sokka's actual body was... gone."

"Maybe Aang is just over too much water," Sokka suggested. "I know that during a hunt, water throws off the scent, and we did lose him way back on Ember Island. Maybe we're just too far for... Nyla... to pick up the sent?"

"Good thought," June noted, "but wrong. Nyla's not like a polar bear-dog or whatever else you used to track with. If he were anywhere on the planet, she could smell him."

"So, do you mean, he's... you know... dead?" Sokka choked out the word.

"Nope," June denied. "We could find him if he were dead."

"Then why can't you find him when he's alive?" Zuko demanded.

"I dunno," June shrugged. "It's a real head-scratcher. Maybe your girlfriend's right, though. I can't say for sure, as we've never smelled a spirit before."

"Helpful," Toph snorted as Katara flushed again at the girlfriend comment. "Real helpful."

"Hey, I just call 'em as we smell 'em," June brushed her off, jumping into Nyla's saddle. "See ya when you win the war!"

"Wait!" Zuko stopped her. He took a deep breath. _Well, on to Plan B... _"I have another idea." Everyone, including June, quieted as they waited for him to continue and Zuko could tell that they knew he was about to say something important. "There's only one other person in the world that can help us face the Fire Lord," he admitted.

"The Phoenix King," Toph corrected, but Zuko ignored her.

"If we can't find Aang... Then we have to do our best to stop Father without him," Zuko concluded.

"Good luck with that," June deadpanned.

"I said, wait," Zuko told her. "Look, there's someone else I need to find. Could you... just give us a moment and I'll be right back with a smell sample?" June nodded, a bit huffily, and Zuko turned back to his companions. "So, now is the time for you to speak up if any of you have any other ideas for finding Aang. If not, we're moving on."

"Moving on!" Katara shouted, eyes blazing. He had already known his biggest protests would come from her. "What on earth do you mean by that? How can we 'move on'? Without the Avatar we can't fight the Fire Lord-"

"We have to," Zuko answered simply.

"You want us to forget about him?" Toph shot out. "What if he's in danger?"

"I didn't say to forget about him," Zuko denied. "But we have to stop my father first. Then, and only then, will we have time for chasing phantoms. Trust me, if Aang doesn't want to be found, we won't find him. Instead, we have to be ready to face things if he doesn't come back."

"You don't think he will come back?" Suki asked suddenly.

"I don't know," Zuko admitted. "I... I hope he does, but..."

"But if he does, he'll need us to have a battle plan," Sokka concluded. "And if he doesn't, then we'll need to have our own plan."

Zuko nodded at the younger male, glad that he didn't have to say it himself.

"You have a plan?" Suki implored.

"I don't," Zuko admitted. "At least, not really. But... I know someone who will."

"Who?" Toph asked.

Zuko felt a small, nervous smile pull on his lips. "Uncle."

"But you said you didn't know where he was," Sokka pointed out.

"Exactly," Zuko agreed, confusing the Water Tribesman. "Suki, can you get me that shoe you and Katara found in Sokka's room?"

As perplexed as her boyfriend, Suki went to dig the item out of their pack, and Zuko turned his gaze to Katara's watery one. "I'm sorry," he told her simply. "I don't know what else to do."

She shook her head angrily. "I understand what you're saying," she said, "but I don't agree with it. I... we need Aang. We just do."

"We're going to have to make do. Avatar or no Avatar. I'm sorry," he apologized again, knowing there was little else anyone could have done at this point.

Then Suki was back with the slipper, and the group gathered around Zuko as he took it and moved towards the Shirshu. "You saved your uncle's sweaty sandal?" Sokka suddenly understood, holding his nose against Iroh's stench.

"I think it's kind of sweet," Toph told him, and Zuko glared at her, despite the fact she couldn't see him do so.

"I didn't save it," he insisted. "The room Sokka stayed in once belonged to be him. This is why I asked Katara and Suki to search the room, so that if we couldn't find Aang, June could help us find my uncle instead."

"Ugh! That was in my room?" Sokka gaped, but everyone ignored him.

June was smiling haughtily at the sandal and its barer. "When all else fails, go crawling back to the old fool's feet, huh?"

Zuko felt that guilty place in his heart tug painfully. "You've no idea," he muttered. "Can... can you track him?"

June snorted, and kneed Nyla forward to sniff the shoe. Zuko backed away cautiously as the mole's dangerous head moved inches from his hand. Eventually, the Shirshu snorted and June hitched up on her reigns. "Let's do this."

"Hey!" Zuko shouted as the blind beast and its master bounded out of the clearing. "Wait up! Appa's tired!"

But the furry beast gave a trembling roar and stood, as if daring anyone to call him tired again. Sensing the sky bison's determination, the Avatar's posse climbed into the saddle quickly, Zuko taking the reins. Katara curled up in the back seat and didn't look at him, and he tried to put it out of his mind. _I'll talk to her soon. Right now I have to get us to Uncle. _His stomach squirmed again. _Okay, don't think about that either._

"You guys sleep," he called back from his position on Appa's head. "Who knows how far we'll have to travel."

He hoped that one of them actually did.


	46. Chapter 46:Fan and Sword

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: fluff, fans, and painted faces - we've got an all out chick fight coming up, with a very confused, sword swinging sokka stuck in the center, and just a little zutara angst to top off the cake! and speaking of cake... mmm... i'mma go eat some... *plops down on bed with a big piece and a spoon* (what? i can't find a fork! i never let that stop me from eating cake...)_

**Trombe: And for those who pointed out June's name. Yeah, it's actually spelled that way according to the Avatar official website. Go figure.**

_artsyelric: psst! hey, trombs, remember that coffee crumble cake you make? mmmm! i remember it... *wink wink, nudge nudge*_

**Trombe: As I recall it, I signed a contract and when I left that bakery I am no longer obliged to make such a cake...So there... Prop shout out to our Beta, Kuro.  
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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 46: Fan and Sword**

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The night was long, uneventful, bumpy, and worse...

Zuko was beginning to feel that familiar weariness enveloping his body.

While he acted the part of the considerate leader and let the others rest, truth be told, he wouldn't have minded being able to catch a few winks himself. But what was done was done, and he was determined to at least equal the great sky bison's previous determination in finding his missing master. Appa might not have liked the idea of suddenly shifting targets, but Zuko had hoped that the majestic creature could read his heart and understand the predicament they were faced with. Surprisingly, the Avatar's spirit animal complied... but not without snorting out his complaint.

The bounty hunter June led the chase in great strides, always keeping her distance far enough for her to do her job without anyone disturbing her, but close enough so that she did not lose sight of the solemn crew that trailed behind her. A true professional was at work.

And yet Zuko wondered if his plan was enough.

Find Uncle, yes.

...But what then?

What could they do together?

What can the Order of the White Lotus do?

What was Zuko going to say?

What if Uncle wouldn't see him?

What if they really could not win the war without the Avatar?

A shake of his head tossed the doubting questions out of him. No, the Fire Prince had no time to dwell upon such thoughts. Doubt was the enemy. He needed to focus at the task at hand.

He turned his head around, carefully looking at the sleeping faces of his comrades. Sokka drooled uncontrollably, his girl Suki huddled close for warmth, her face peaceful. He couldn't tell if Toph was asleep, but the earthbender was laying there quietly with arms crossed as if to shield off some of the wind and not a peep could be heard from her.

That left only one person aboard the saddle and he was not surprised to find her wide awake. And staring at him.

"Are you not tired?" He asked simply as he turned his head back and devoted his attention to the road ahead.

"I'll sleep once I fully know that Aang is okay," Katara answered curtly, her voice tired.

Annoyed he may have been with her snappy response, Zuko could not blame Katara for being a little resentful.

"You're still mad at me for abandoning Aang like that," Zuko surmised.

The night air was filled only with the soft melody of nature's nocturnal creatures as the waterbender did not answer right away.

"...No," was the response Katara came up with.

The former Prince of Fire could not help but sigh. "Liar," he muttered under his breath.

And so they continued to ride on in quiet.

After what had seemed like an eternity, Zuko was thoroughly surprised to find Katara breaking the silence.

"I'm sorry."

"What?"

"I'm not... really mad at you. I was just... I know you were just making the best of the situation at hand and you didn't deserve to be yelled at. I'm... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

Zuko glanced behind him once more only to see Katara curling her knees up while resting her chin upon it, her arms enveloping around them. He once heard that the human body reflected the state of the mind. He wondered if that was actually true and if Katara was really distressed that much with the loss of the Avatar.

"You don't have to apologize, Katara," he tried his best to comfort the girl, knowing firsthand how horrible he was at it. "You were probably in the right for being mad at me. In a way, I guess you could say my biggest offense is not having enough faith in the Ava– I mean, in Aang. I'm kind of envious of that. In how you could just believe in that goofy little kid... and that he can save us all." Zuko tried as best as he could to say what he felt and just had to hope it was right.

She didn't answer for a moment, and so the prince was surprised when he felt her presence right beside him, her luscious hair being caressed by the cool night breeze as its tips playfully touched his skin, her voice a deeper whisper now.

"It's not just that, Zuko. That goofy little kid is our friend too," she added, as if that explained her devotion. "It just doesn't feel right. Giving up on him like that."

"We're not giving up on him, Katara." The firebender was growing aware of how loud their conversation was becoming and he desperately tried to minimize his voice. "But at this point and time, we have no choice but to press forward. I know it seems cruel and cold, but our attention is needed elsewhere," he reasoned.

"It doesn't make up for the fact that it feels wrong." Katara's words took out the last hurrah Zuko might have had in his reasoning.

"Then I guess all you can do now is just trust in me and hope that your faith in Aang isn't misplaced."

"It's not that I don't trust you-"

"Oh really? Because back in the bar you didn't seem to-"

He bit his tongue too late. Before he'd realized what he was saying, Zuko had openly discussed what had been plaguing his mind beneath the more realistic worries. While he'd been trying to push this back in order to make room for more important things, it just kept slipping in at the corners of his thoughts – and apparently, comments – at exactly the wrong times. Like now. Zuko was pretty sure he might as well have dug himself another hole with that remark as far as Katara was concerned. How little he knew women, indeed.

"What?" Zuko swore he could feel Katara's eyes drilling a hole into him.

"Back there, with that whole mess. I told you to not do anything-"

"And I didn't-"

"Except flirt maybe!" Yup, the hole was dug, and now he was burying himself in the grave.

"Flirting?!" Katara's voice raised a few octaves. "You think that was flirting? And what do you call your situation? I don't seem to recall you telling that waitress off!"

"She was giving me my drink!"

"And I suppose her goo-goo eyes were just naturally looking in your direction?"

"What are you saying?" Zuko frowned.

"I'm saying if you were going to do that you might as well have-"

"Wait, are you..."

"And for the last time, I'm NOT jealous!"

"–Jealous?"

Awkwardly the two teens ended at the same time, faces flushed, gold and blue eyes staring at each other. Only the sudden moan from Sokka brought their attention away as they spied back behind them, relieved to see the Water Tribe warrior was just yawning and was just changing his sleeping posture.

For moment, Zuko tried to avoid looking at Katara, who was obviously mirroring the same reaction. Awkward shock being the closest description.

"Look we might as well say this now, just to clarify..." Zuko took one last look behind them before continuing to whisper. "You and I... We're complicated, right?"

The waterbender didn't justify it with a verbal response, but rather she nodded her head slowly in an almost defeated manner.

"Back there in the town... I wasn't trying to make you jealous. You know that. I'm not that good," he continued on, laughing weakly at his attempt of a joke. When Katara didn't even smile, he soldiered on. "But... you know, I'm kind of happy."

"...You're happy that the girl you like is _slightly_ mad at you?" Katara finally answered with a raised eyebrow in tow, not sure where Zuko's logic was coming from.

"No. Not that. Just... happy enough to know you care about me at least that much." The prince scratched his chin awkwardly, his cheeks red from the sudden confession, however Katara didn't seem to be grasping his real meaning. "I guess, what I mean is... not everyone has the... nerve... to admit jealousy. The fact that you'd feel, um... possessive... at all, of me, is... flattering, right?"

"Flattering?" Katara sounded as if she was having trouble getting her mouth around the word. "I... No. You shouldn't be happy because of something like that. For your information, it's not like I want to feel this way," she mumbled, apparently getting flustered and turned about.

Oddly enough, Katara's nervous reply made Zuko's feelings for the exotic Water Tribe girl burn even brighter. She _did_ feel something for him. It just made him want her all the more. Even now in such dire times she somehow made it a little bit more bearable.

"Katara, I–"

But she stopped him, obviously trying to get her own thoughts together. "Zuko, please. Just... just listen." The blue eyed bender took a long and deep breath, wanting to shed the truth of her feelings once and for all and searching for the words to do so. Zuko waited anxiously while she did. "I... I like you... "

Zuko's heart leapt at the notion of the confession.

"...But..."

Only to have it plummet back down into the abyss once more.

"But?" he urged her to continue.

"But... I'm just... a little lost at the moment," he could honestly tell by the sad gleam in those sapphire eyes that she meant what she said. "My feelings for you... what I've always had with Aang... this whole end of the world plot by your father... it's... it's just a bit overwhelming. I'm... I'm just a fourteen year old girl. I... I just feel so–"

"So you regret it?" he gave voice to the deep seated fear momentarily, bracing for the worst.

"No!" Katara denied, and suddenly it was if a weight was gone. "No, not that, Zuko! I mean, I probably should... but that's why this is all so confusing, and I don't know what to feel any- AH! Zuko!" Her startled cry dropped to a whisper at his name as her weight tipped suddenly and she tumbled over the edge of the saddle and into his waiting arms.

Zuko himself had not heard a word past her not regretting it – he just suddenly had to have her in his arms, and to forget anything in the way.

"Zuko–" Katara protested again softly as she settled forcibly into his lap atop the bison's head and Zuko strained quickly to adjust for holding Appa's reigns.

But Zuko didn't give her a chance to protest this time. "Katara, now _you_ listen," the Fire Prince commanded, and Katara's jaw actually clicked shut. "The Boiling Rock, Hama, the Raiders, Ember Island, and now Aang... We've been through so much. I can honestly say I don't think our relationship will ever be normal," he concluded sadly. "But... It does not change a thing. Not a single thing. What I feel for you is... it's genuine. I will say that much."

"Zuko..."

"And it's alright. What you're feeling. What you're going through. I understand. Believe me, I do. And there might come a time when I would want more, but I'm satisfied with where we are right now. You don't have to answer. You don't even have to think about it. We'll do that when the time is right. Right now... we have our duty. Fine. But that doesn't mean we can't have each other too, right?"

"So... what are we then?" Katara voiced in one final protest.

"Does it matter?" Zuko asked – he'd just laid his heart bare! How could she harp over something as simple as a name for their... whatever they were. "I said it before, and I'll say it again. This is about right now, about us, so just forget tomorrow and everyone else."

"No strings?" Katara clarified, her eyes watching his thoughtfully, as if what he offered couldn't be nearly as simple as he'd suggested.

"No strings," he repeated assuredly as she continued to study him.

Her silence felt like a burning sensation for the prince; he was in total agony with not knowing what she was thinking. Whatever it was, he wasn't sure he was getting through because she still had that disbelieving look in her eyes. He opened his mouth to correct whatever it was he had said wrong - what if she _wanted _to be something more serious and he had messed it? He would just have to tell her whatever she wanted was okay then. It was, wasn't it? Well, it wouldn't hurt to try, maybe... He opened his mouth to say so, but she stopped his next speech before he started by leaning her soft head against his shoulder and placing a small finger on his lips. He raised an eyebrow curiously, noticing that, at some point, her gaze had changed from weighting to wondrous affection. A smile played across her lips.

"You know... you talk too much." Zuko nearly gaped at her, but her grin widened playfully, and suddenly Zuko was reminded that she had grown up around one of the biggest pranksters he had ever met. "Has anyone ever told you that you're a smooth talker?" she added, this time more seductively, and suddenly the fact that she was throwing his own words back at him ceased to matter at all.

"Now that... is the biggest joke of all." Zuko couldn't help but smile with her as he tilted his head so that their lips met briefly. They repeated the gesture once in chaste, whispered silence, and then Katara curled into his chest and Zuko snuggled deeper into Appa's fur so that his cheeks could feel the warmth of Katara's presence. "You really should get some sleep for now. I'll think of something if Sokka wakes up."

"You're never going to tell him, are you?" Katara concluded.

"Not in a million years..."

Meanwhile a few distances away, June could not help but smile mischievously as she continued to pat her pet mount. "Told ya they were boyfriend and girlfriend," she whispered to the Shirshu. Nyla just hissed in return. "Yeah, yeah. I know she smelled of the other boy... Speaking of whom, I wonder how the Avatar is going to react over when he finds out that his girl has just been whisked away by a prince in his absence..."

Once again, Nyla had no answer.

* * *

"We need to stop."

Sokka yawned as he came partially awake, the sky still dark.

"Why?" came June's reply from somewhere below them. "If we travel straight through the night, and keep up this pace, we can probably reach the scent's source by nightfall tomorrow."

"That eager to be rid of us?" Zuko's voice quirked back in his dry, unforgiving tones, and once again Sokka was left wondering if that was supposed to be humor or a threat.

"I'm not that optimistic." June's drawl nearly matched his, and Sokka tried harder to pull himself out of his sleep. "I just thought you were old enough to stay up past bedtime."

Sokka didn't need to see Zuko to picture his scowl. "It's not me. Appa's been flying all day since we lost Aang, plus carrying all of us. Nyla's only got you, and she's a good deal more rested than him. It's only a few more hours until dawn. Let's rest."

There was a tense moment, but Zuko hadn't commanded, exactly, and June seemed to give in eventually. "Fine," she snapped. "But we have to start again in the morning if you want to make it before nightfall. I, for one, have no intention of being anywhere on the continent when the Scorching of the Earth Kingdom begins."

"That won't happen," Zuko argued.

"If we don't find your Avatar, it will," June countered.

Zuko was silent, but Sokka could almost hear his friend's words from earlier. If Aang wasn't there, if they couldn't find him, Zuko planned to face his father instead. To stop the burning of the Earth Kingdoms, if he could. Sokka could feel that resolve about him again and moments later, Zuko gave a definitive tug on Appa's reins.

The beast rose a bit, climbing up the grassy hill ahead of June, who had to make her way through trees that the sky bison could easily skip with airbending. Sokka shifted against Suki, but didn't feel like moving her weight to get a better look. The allure of her presence was too great. Plus, she was warm. Moments later though, Zuko was settling Appa down to the ground, where he collapsed in a tired little huff, and Sokka knew he couldn't feign sleep any longer.

"Should we set up camp?" Sokka asked, alerting the firebender to his awakened state.

"No," Zuko said after a minute. "We'll just be here for a few hours. But… we should unsaddle Appa. I'm sure he would appreciate it." Appa gave a rumble of pleasure at the prince's words. "Get everyone off, and grab the sleeping bags."

"It's cold," Sokka pointed out, slipping from under Suki regretfully. "We should make a fire."

Zuko shook his head. "We don't know who's out there, and I don't want to risk sending anyone to gather wood."

"You're a firebender," Sokka argued. "Why do you need wood?"

"Do you _want _a brush fire?" Zuko snarled, and Sokka saw him hefting Katara into his arms as the waterbender murmured sleepily. "Or perhaps you expect me to stay up all night _holding _the fire to keep your skinny bones warm?" Once again Sokka was left to wonder if Zuko actually thought he was being funny or intimidating.

"Okay, okay!" he caved. "I just don't see why you have to make _all _the decisions around here. You could clue us in every _once _in a while."

"I'll try to remember that." Zuko turned his back and slipped to the ground with Katara, and Sokka half hoped that his sister would come awake in the firebender's arms and give him an affronted what-for.

Unfortunately, Katara didn't. In fact, she barely stirred at all in the prince's grip, so Sokka was forced to toss the bedrolls to Zuko, who caught them one handed, kicked them into a pile on the ground, and began spreading one out for Katara. Sokka was suddenly overcome with the desire to toss something else at him, this time towards his left eye. _Don't drop stuff on Toph, and don't throw things at Zuko's left side, _he chanted a mantra to himself sternly before bending to lift Suki.

Once again, Sokka's luck was not with him, as the girl stirred when he went to lift her (how did Zuko make it look so easy to carry someone? Suki was _heavy _and she was smaller than Katara!) "Hey, sexy," she grinned wearily, pouting her lips for a quick kiss when she realized the only other occupant of the saddle was still sound asleep and snoring. "Where are we?"

"Camp ground. We're stopping for a few hours until dawn. His Highness' orders," he added with a frown.

"Urgh," Suki grumbled and stretched. "Help me up."

Sokka took her offered hand and pulled her to her feet. Beneath them, Zuko had the rest of the bedrolls laid out and was returning to the bison. The Fire Prince reached up for Suki as she stepped off the edge of the saddle and out of Sokka's arms, and he once again had to bite his lip as Zuko, seemingly effortlessly, caught Sokka's girlfriend by her hips and lifted her lightly to the ground. She ambled over to a sleeping bag beside Katara, buried deeply inside, and was asleep again in minutes.

Grumbling angrily to himself at what he now felt was a blatant display of muscle on Zuko's part, Sokka hefted Toph into his arms almost victoriously. The fact that she was twelve and the smallest member of their group aside, he turned as if to brag his own feat back at Zuko, but the prince wasn't even paying attention any more. He had turned to talk to June, who had just arrived in the clearing with a huffing Nyla, and offer her a sleeping bag if she didn't have one for the weather. Snarling, Sokka slid to the ground, trying not to wake Toph. The girl just snorted sleepily and curled her arms around his neck.

He had just laid Toph into her sleeping bag and managed to detach himself from her tiny, tangled fingers when Zuko came back up behind him and yawned hugely. "I'm beat," he admitted. "Would you unsaddle Appa for me? You can go to bed straight after. June says she'll take first watch."

"June?" Sokka protested. "You can't trust her! And why do we need a watch anyway?"

Zuko yawned again and tugged at his belt sash, freeing his shirt and tugging it off in preparation for sleep as he answered, a sure sign that he wasn't going to change his mind no matter what Sokka said. "We need a watch because we're in the middle of unknown territory with a bunch of Fire Nation troops moving across who-knows-which-way, and we didn't scout the area. We've no idea who else might be here. And as for June, you're right, we probably can't trust her very far. But as for keeping lookout for tonight, I think we're fine. She has a reputation to keep up, and she wants to be paid, so for now, at least, she's on our side." He lay down, exposing his scarred back slightly for a moment, and, despite how callous Zuko was treating him, Sokka felt his anger draining away. "You'll get Appa?" he asked wearily.

"Yeah," Sokka agreed. "I'll get Appa. But I'm not sleeping," he added. "I'll keep watch with June."

Zuko shrugged uncaringly and started snoring softly moments later, and Sokka was forcibly reminded of their shared camping trip. _He's just trying his best, _Sokka justified. _We're all on edge because of Aang, and the 'Phoenix King' and... Everything..._

He was halfway through unsaddling Appa, still reflecting on all Zuko's worries, when it hit him. Zuko had _asked _him to unsaddle Appa. Like it was _naturally _Zuko's job. As if every responsibility in the camp ground, especially those left by Aang, were automatically to be placed on _his _shoulders! He even coerced Sokka, if unwittingly, into doing it to 'help' Zuko. Sokka ground his teeth. Did Zuko not think he could pull his own weight? He wasn't stupid. He hadn't missed how the prince had specifically _not _told him anything about that mysterious White Lotus group and then called him stupid for not knowing. Granted, Zuko had pointed out that Sokka had said before they entered that Admiral Chan's house that he did know, but Sokka obviously hadn't meant he knew about the entire secret society – he meant he _knew _what the tile was for! Duh! Zuko didn't have to insult him for it...

But it wasn't just then. It was every turn. Everyone: Suki, Katara, Toph, they were all looking to Zuko for answers, and Sokka felt like screaming 'I'm the leader!' on more than one occasion, though he knew from experience that rarely worked. Of course, he could tell the burden was heavy for Zuko too, and the prince was the logical choice, since he was the best Aang hunter any of them knew, but it still riled Sokka. They'd been all over on that wild goose chase, and Zuko had never once thought to fill them in on his plans until _after _they'd had a whole bar fight and stumbled on this June lady. And now Zuko just _told _him to sleep, as if he could, when a woman who had once hunted them and tried to kill them was awake and keeping watch.

Not that Zuko had not tried to kill them too, but that was different. Aang had said he was okay.

Aang.

Sokka tossed Appa's finally freed saddle to the ground with a huff, tucked his freezing hands under his arms, and settled in for a chilly, sleepless night, his mind going in circles.

That was what it came down to. Aang. Sokka had always been the leader, but in the end all the final calls came from Aang. Aang would say, 'we're doing this' and then Sokka would figure out how to do it. Even when Zuko arrived, Aang said he needed him, and that was that. Yes, he'd _asked _their opinion, but in the end, what Aang said was what went. Then, of course, when Sokka and Zuko rammed heads on rare occasions, it never really came to a battle for dominance, because they would both present ideas and Aang would pick, naturally keeping the peace. Without the wise young monk, tension was suddenly rising between Sokka and his firebending friend.

He shook his head. This was stupid. Zuko was his friend and he should be supporting him, even if he was more used to leading a ship of blind followers than a group of equals. But just knowing that didn't make the resentment leave.

_Stupid, bossy, macho Zuko and 'his-picking-people-up-and-firebending' everything! _Sokka kicked angrily at a stump and June raised an eyebrow at him across the clearing. "What?" he demanded of her, and she simply shrugged, not even batting a long-lashed eye. Sokka scowled. "I'm going to get firewood."

June frowned. "I thought his royal pain-in-the-butt said we don't want people to see us. Won't a fire draw attention?"

"I hate to point this out to you, lady, but there's no one out here. It's probably, like, three in the morning, and I'm freezing. Plus, just in case this missed your notice, Zuko is not the boss of me!" June snorted slightly. "He isn't!"

"Right." She rolled her eyes plainly in a gesture that reminded him vividly of Azula during the invasion and the rude way she spelled out her actions so that even Toph's blindness couldn't miss it.

He bristled slightly. "Whatever! Stay here and freeze if you want. I'm going over to those trees, grabbing some wood, and making myself a nice warm fire."

June ignored him. Sokka huffed and stomped off towards the forest, looking for loose wood and silently cursing Zuko, June, Aang, and, well, just about everyone he could think of. The tirade did little to lighten his spirit however, though the viscous tearing branches from the ground did. Sokka was doing just that, completely absorbed in the physical labor and grumbling heatedly to himself things that he probably wouldn't mean come morning, when it happened.

Sokka's arm was wrenched violently around behind him, followed by a thin, sharp piece of metal pressing coldly into his neck. Instantly, a commanding, silky voice warned, "Freeze."

Sokka did.

A moment later there was a ringing sound that Sokka knew instinctively was his sword. It hit the ground in a clatter. He tried to strain his neck around far enough for a glance of his attacker, but all he saw was dirty brown hair. "What are you- oof!"

"Quiet!" the feminine voice hissed as she pushed Sokka up against the tree. "Any more weapons?"

"Lots." She must have thought he was joking, because after freeing his boomerang from his belt, she stopped searching.

"Tell me what your men are doing here."

"My... men?" Sokka blinked a few times. "There's only one other guy in our group besides me."

"Don't play stupid!" the girl growled, and Sokka felt the cool steal pressing against his neck again. "Answer the question."

Before Sokka could even say a word, a loud crack sounded inches from his ear, and two tiny cuts appeared on his neck, stinging like he had nicked himself shaving. He let out a startled cry at the same time the girl behind him did. "Let the boy go," June's voice commanded.

Sokka risked a glance down to see the blade at his neck - no, it wasn't a blade. It was something else... a fan? Whatever it was, the end of June's whip was now wrapped secure around the base of it, and the two women were in a tug of war over the weapon. Sokka didn't stop to flinch at how lucky a shot June had made by catching the fan and not whipping Sokka's neck, because he realized that if the tug-of-war went sour, it would be his neck on the chopping block. Literally.

Swinging his arm down as hard as he could, he spun away from the blade, freeing himself and throwing the struggling girl off balance. Yes, that was definitely a fan. A golden fan. He felt anger surge inside him as the dirty, stained girl in red rags stumbled trying to hold onto it. He grabbed her wrist. "Where did you get this?" he demanded.

"Now, get her!"

June let out a strangled cry as two more girls dropped on her from the trees, and her whip gave way with a snap as the first girl finally tugged free. Sokka only watched long enough to see June draw a short sword and side step one of her attackers before tightening his grip on the girl he still had. "That's a Kyoshi fan!" he shouted. "Tell me who you stole it from!"

"It's mine!" The girl snarled, trying to pull her arm free, but Sokka didn't relent.

Angry, Sokka reached out to disarm her, but had to duck at the last moment as the girl launched an offensive with her free hand. Rolling backwards, he came up with his sword. "You don't want to do this," he warned her. "Just give the fan back."

"I'll never let a _boy _touch my fan!" the girl shouted, leaping at him savagely. He blocked with his sword, but the force of her attack drove him back a step. Suddenly, she smiled, her crazy hair and mixed up armor making her look almost like a freedom fighter for a second. Then she yelled, "Min, now!"

Something closed tight around Sokka's foot as another red, tattered body flew past him, and he was yanked off his feet with a startled yell. As he tried to get his bearings, he realized he'd stepped in a rope, and a fourth girl had pulled it tight, leaping out of a tree. He was now suspended in mid air, upside-down, by his ankle, cursing himself. _I just thought she looked like a Freedom Fighter and I didn't see _this _coming?_

But these were no Freedom Fighters. They were, mostly, older than any of Jet's former gang, and they were all girls for that matter. Plus, they fought with a trained elegance, not a savage disregard. Even now the first girl was making another attempt to disarm him with her fan. He swung the black sword to block it, feeling the two metals bite into each other wickedly. Then the second girl unfurled not just one, but two fans.

"Oh, now this is getting ridiculous!" he shouted angrily. "I demand to know where you got those!"

"We don't take orders from men," the new girl sneered derisively, still struggling to hold him up in the air.

"Just tell me – I won't hurt you!" he insisted as the first girl took another swing at him. "Urgh, Suki is so going to _kill _me!"

The girl's swing stopped dead, and Sokka overbalanced when his blade didn't meet hers, spinning somewhat. "What?" she asked, stupidly.

"I said, I won't hurt you. I just want to know about your fa–"

"Not that!" The girl's eyebrows narrowed suspiciously. "Who's going to kill you?"

"My girlfriend!" Sokka shouted, annoyed. "Suki."

"Sokka?" the girl who had the rope ventured. "Are you Sokka?"

"Who else would I be?" he demanded. "Wait, how do you–"

"Sokka!" The boy gave a shout as the Kyoshi Warrior dropped the rope, and Sokka crashed into the ground head first. When he managed to roll over, he found that he didn't need his sword. The first girl latched onto him tightly for a minute, very dirty still, and laughed as Sokka was left in shock. "It's really you! De, Yu, stop it! It's Sokka!"

Over the girl's head, Sokka observed the very confused scene in front of him as one Kyoshi Warrior kicked desperately, caught in June's chokehold. Then she managed to turn her head towards them, and the other girl almost dropped her blade in surprise. "Suki's boy?" the girl asked. "You mean the one who travels with the Avatar?"

"You know these riff-raff?" June asked, raising an eyebrow, and Sokka suddenly realized she still had the fourth girl by the throat.

"Oh, uh, yeah," he agreed. "I guess... Let her go, and we'll sort this all out."

"Not here," the girl who had been holding his rope spoke suddenly, her voice crisp. "There's danger here."

"Danger?" Sokka asked.

"Nearly fifty Fire Nation soldiers are camped not far from here," the girl stated, as if giving a report. "We were trying to find out why there's been so many of them lately, all apparently leaving their posts, but no one we've managed to capture seems to know."

"And you thought I would," Sokka surmised, causing the girl to nod. "Well, I do, but you're right. We shouldn't talk about this here. I'll take you back to camp and we can sort this all out, but first... How do you know me?" June made an offended sound.

The smallest girl laughed, and the strict faced one reporting to him widened her eyes alarmingly. Then the tallest one finally clued him in. "You always were an idiot from the small time I've known you," she chuckled. "Don't you recognize me from Kyoshi Island? I'm Yu – Suki's best friend."

Now it was Sokka's turn to give a start. "Yu?" he gaped, remembering the exotically beautiful girl that had once towered over him, her high bun and jade-green hairpiece adding to the effect. The regal stance was the same, but somehow she looked almost unfamiliar. She was covered in dirt and clad in red rags rather than appearing noble in the jade and gold battle attire of the Kyoshi Warrior, where once her hair was done up and her face painted, lay only hair that lost its luster and a face that held painful bruises. "What happened to you?"

"Captured," she said offhandedly, as if it didn't matter, or, more likely, she didn't want to talk about it. Her face paled a bit. "We managed to escape in due time but...I'm sorry, we... we lost Suki. We were sent to separate prisons, and–"

"Suki is safe with me, back at camp. We kind of, um... rescued her," Sokka explained, and once again he was being greeted as a hero, this time by Yu, Lei, and De, the girl June had been choking.

Min watched them critically for a moment and allowed them to rejoice over their leader's safety, but then, before any more questions could be asked, she snapped her fingers and reminded them quite crisply that they were still in enemy territory. June was remiss to allow the girls back to camp, but Sokka was too caught up in the jubilee to care much. It was a real effort just to keep his voice down. He felt like sprinting up into the clearing right now and waking Suki. Even if she rarely talked about it out loud, he could tell she was missing her friends. Suki without her warriors was kind of like Zuko with his kingdom. Whatever they claimed, you could tell where they were meant to be. Sokka couldn't wait to reunite the girls.

As they crossed the short distance back to camp, Sokka gave them the fastest ever recount of the Boiling Rock – about how he got inside information, Zuko's involvement, allowing Katara to come along against his better judgment, and how they had sneaked into the high level prison to search for his father. When he found Suki there he was shocked and pleased, and she quickly joined their escape attempt. Now they were traveling together, but had (temporarily) lost Aang, and June was there to help find him. Sokka finished up with explaining why the Fire Nations soldiers were there, and about Ozai's plan to burn the Earth Kingdom, to a round of horrified gasps.

The bounty hunter smiled alluringly as he said that, towering over the smaller girls in an almost menacing manner that let Sokka know she was still uncomfortable with bringing strangers to camp on her watch, but she said nothing.

As they reached the campsite, Sokka couldn't contain himself. Darting ahead of the girls, he rushed to the sleeping bag Suki was huddled in, shaking her gently and urgently. "Suki! Suki, wake up! You'll never guess who I found! Suki!"

The girl grumbled and tried to swat him off, but he was persistent. "Suki, I found the rest of your warriors. Suuukiii!"

The girl sat up suddenly with a gasp, bumping her head against her boyfriend's, and as Sokka rubbed the bump in annoyance – _I found her warriors, her long lost friends, and all I get is a smack to the forehead! Where's my kiss and hero-worship?_ – She let out a shocked cry and flung herself out of the bedding. "Yu! Spirits, it's you! And De, Min, Lei – all of you! You're alive!"

A few of the Kyoshi Warriors were nearly crying at this point as each took a turn to embrace Suki, and suddenly, despite being the hero, Sokka was beginning to feel a bit ostracized. _Great, the one person still paying attention to me and I have to go and reunite her with four long-lost distractions..._

Suki and the warriors were making enough noise now to cause the rest of the camp to stir. Toph let out an angry grumble and was soon surrounded by a dome of stone, a muffled "Shaddup!" coming from deep inside it. Katara gaped for a moment until Sokka finally explained to her what was going on.

"It's the Kyoshi Warriors," he started, and before he had finished the thought, Katara had followed Suki's motions, flung herself out of bed, and embraced each member before falling into the fawning girl-talk.

It wasn't until Zuko finally opened a bleary eye that the scene changed. He glanced up at Sokka, down towards the girls, blinked a few times, and then asked, "Is this an attack?"

Sokka snorted with laughter at his frown, finally feeling like there was some small measure of fairness in the world again. _Ha, something I know and Zuko doesn't! Take that, Mr. White Lotus know-it-all!_

"They're Suki's friends," Sokka explained. "Azula captured them, and I found them just a few minutes ago."

Zuko's frown deepened and Sokka had a moment where he thought the prince was sizing him up. He started to preen proudly when Zuko deadpanned, "You went to gather firewood, didn't you?" Sokka's entire body drooped. "Ah, you did! After I specifically said not to!"

"It's a good thing I _did,_" Sokka shot back, "or we never would have found Yu and the rest."

"Good thing?" Zuko argued. "There was a group of armed warriors in the trees right next to our camp – it could have just as easily been Fire Nation soldiers as any of your friends. It's actually more probable that you would have met soldiers."

Sokka sagged even further. "Actually, the girls said there's a Fire Nation camp just a mile or so from here..."

"Argh! Sokka!"

As Zuko ran his hands through his hair, the reunited warriors were suddenly given a glance at the scar beneath the boy's bangs and one of them cried out, but Zuko didn't seem to notice as he continued to speak. "Sokka, I'm glad you found your friends, but if you had been attacked, we wouldn't even have heard!" Sokka flinched as he realized that was almost exactly what had happened, had it not been for, of all people, June. "We would have slept right through it, and you could have– AH!"

Both Sokka and Zuko gave startled cries as a hand suddenly yanked the Water Tribesman backward away from the prince, and solid kick knocked Zuko sprawling onto his stomach, partially blindsiding him as it came from his back, left side. Even if he had been expecting it, the scar would have made it hard to predict, and the prince tumbled nearly half way out of his sleeping bag, grabbing his head and snarling angrily.

"What are you doing!?" Katara was shouting, water suddenly shoving its way between the warriors and the fallen prince. "Stop it!"

"That's Zuko!" Min was shouting as Suki jumped up to hold her second in command back. "Prince Zuko, of the Fire Nation!"

"Min," Suki assured her fellow warrior, "it's okay. I know you don't like it, but he's on our side now."

"Our side?" Lei echoed, releasing Sokka a bit as she had dragged the boy away from Zuko the moment she recognized the threat.

"What!" Min was snarling at this point. "Suki, it's _him! _Zuko! The man who burned our village!"

"He's changed, Min, I swear," Suki was saying, but her voice was heavy.

"It's his _sister _who captured you!"

"I know," Suki whispered her head hanging. Then it came back up. "But he isn't his sister. He's no more Azula than he is his father."

"No, he's Zuko! The man who killed my sister!" Min screamed, tears coming from her eyes now.

Sokka realized his mouth was hanging open stupidly, but didn't really care. Katara looked kind of torn, and even Toph was pulling out of her rock cocoon. Zuko's face had gone pale, even for a firebender, and he stopped on his knees instead of finishing his attempt standing, his bare chest heaving slightly. "What?" Sokka heard him whisper, barely. His pleading eyes darted around the group for a minute before locking on Min's. "I don't recall... When?"

"When you burned our village!" Min wept. "My sister... she was caught in the fire. A fire you and your men caused! Our home burned, and my sister... my sister..." Then Min broke down weeping in Suki's arms, the rest of them watching stunned.

Sokka glanced back and forth between them, his own mind spinning over this new revelation. _She burned to death... Oh spirits, and we left before we found out... We never asked. How could we never think to ask? _Well, that was easy, as he had been afraid to know. He glanced at Zuko, whose face was ashen, and saw Katara kneel down beside him – her water shield now unnecessary – as she touched his shoulder slightly, though he showed no sign of noticing. Finally, it was June who spoke, apparently the only one not affected by the incredible emotions running haywire at the scene.

"Oh please! What children," the woman scoffed, stepping forward to face the weeping girl. "Now listen here, girly, you can't blame the prince here for that! This is a _war! _Now, if you were standing here telling me that he plunged his flaming fist into her, or stabbed her through with his swords, or maybe that he'd strangled the life out of her, you'd have a point. Hmm?" Everyone gaped at the morbid and intimidating bounty hunter, Min most of all, but she apparently took the lack of response for an answer anyway. "No? Then stop this now."

"Don't talk to me!" Min shouted, finally finding her voice. "You don't know what it's like!"

"Don't I?" June snapped. "I lost my entire family – my whole family! – in a fire, when I was no older than nine. But did I turn into a blubbering mess? I did not. So pull yourself together and stop looking for someone to blame. Do what I do: take allys and money where you can get 'em, fight where you have to, and run if it's worth it. _That's _how you live. Don't make me say it again."

Somehow, the words seemed to be getting through to the girls, and Sokka took the opportunity to stand up, backing June for the first time. "She's right," he admitted. "Zuko's done a lot of things in the past that weren't, well, the best, but... we all have screwed up in our own ways." Sokka forced himself not to relieve all his own mistakes, pushing away thoughts of Yue's eyes, the failed invasion attempt, Azula's taunting voice telling him how Suki screamed for him... He shook his head clear and pressed on. "What matters is that Zuko is here, just like the rest of us, trying to make up for it and to do what's right. So anything you want to blame him for, you can just take it up with me first."

"Yeah! Whoo-hoo, Sokka!" Toph cheered suddenly. "You tell 'em. Now that that's settled, can we all just SHUT UP AND GO TO SLEEP?!"

The sudden break in tension brought a silly giggle from Katara's lips, followed by a bigger chuckle that became infectious somehow. Soon, a good deal of the camp was laughing, June was smiling, and even Min seemed a bit mollified as Suki continued to promise to her that it wasn't Zuko's fault, and that he had saved her life numerous times. The only person who didn't laugh was Zuko, but Sokka actually felt that the best help for him was Katara, despite (or maybe because of) how often they'd been fighting recently. Where the odd thought came from, he didn't know.

_This night is just too crazy! _Sokka grumbled to himself, and after that he refused to be pacified until Suki had kissed him – twice! – and everyone had managed to snuggle down into blankets for the last few remaining hours of darkness. With the overgrowth of people, they had to scrunch up and share a bit, so Katara kicked at Toph until they were let in, and all the Kyoshi warriors bunched together to share blankets. Sokka turned immediately away from Zuko's forlorn form and squeezed in with Suki instead. Somehow, he had a feeling the prince would be up all night with June instead of him, and suddenly Sokka felt bad. _He needs rest, if he's to lead us._

_Lead._

Sokka was so caught up in the struggle for male dominance that he had forgotten the key element of what made a great leader. A leader knew when to take the reins...but he also knew when to step down and to follow when it was dictated of him. Noble humility at its best.

They needed brains at the moment, not brawn.

Zuko provided both.

Then another new thought hit him. _I'll do it. I'll stop whining about whose got the title of leader, and I'll take up all the slack Zuko leaves. _Suddenly, he realized that Zuko had been doing much the same for him before: on the camping trip, during their venture with Hama, even while they were staying at Ember Island. Only at the Boiling Rock had they shared the lead equally, and that was because they were in such ultimately different roles. Now the tables were just turned a bit and it was Sokka's turn to be more supportive and Zuko's turn to bear the brunt of it all._ I know where we're going; he can rest for a bit then, and let me take care of things. Between the two of us...we can do this..._

Sokka tried to tell himself he'd be okay with that despite his growing uneasy feeling, but the Water Tribe warrior was determined to do it anyway.

_For Aang..._


	47. Chapter 47:The Bigger Picture

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: haha, i noticed a cannon plot hole concerning our kyoshi friends! abuse abuse abuse! _

**Trombe: Sorry for the long update folks. Summer kicked in and well we've had lots to do. Jobs. Conventions. Beach. Girls. You know. And I'm happy to share with all of you I've finally gotten my motorcycle license. Now all that's left is to buy the motorcycle. To tell you the truth folks motorbikes have been taking up much of my time as of lately. It's pretty much all I think about lately. I think I'm becoming a gear head.**

_artsyelric: AX UPDATE: trombs and i just got back from anime expo as well, and we took pics of all avatar cosplayers we happened across while there. maybe we saw you! or maybe you just want to check out who dressed in avatar this year... check it out at _photobucket . com / trombeartsyAXavatarsightings _obviously without spaces. guest password is 'avatar'. fairly simple, huh? also, my friends and i finally placed at ax masquerade! best group construction - huzzah! horray mikarin and haji, you two are always in my hearts!_

_HARRY POTTER HALF BLOOD PRINCE PREMIER KICKED BUTT!(if you guys want pictures, a friend of mine has those at tomslik . com)_

**Trombe: Why?! Why does that Weasley guy get a wonderful girl like Hermione?! Life surely is not fair. I want a tsundere-like girl like Hermione too!!!**

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 47: The Bigger Picture**

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Katara huffed, sending a lock of hair out of her face to whip around in the wind off Appa's saddle somewhere behind her head. She realized she was staring at the warriors beneath her again, the three Kyoshi girls clinging onto the back of June's beast as they rode on the ground below. _They look so much younger without their make-up_, she thought for the umpteenth time. But that wasn't why she was staring, or rather, not exactly.

The fact was, she didn't know how her brother managed to keep them all separate in his mind! Yu, De, Lei, Min... She barely recognized them as the same girls she had known from Kyoshi Island. They looked so different, and when they were dressed in full regalia they were even harder to tell apart. Katara had tried to distinguish the newcomers from one another, but she eventually gave up. She couldn't identify the painted warriors individually and had thanked all things spiritual that Suki had such a drastically different haircut from her fellow Kyoshi Warriors.

However, there was something bugging her about the girls, and somehow she was sure that if she could just manage to pin them all down, manage to put names to faces, she'd get it. Okay, so...

Start over. Min was the second tallest, with all the angles. She had narrow eyes and she was the one whose sister had been lost in the fire. She had a stiff, sorrowful look about her that Katara remembered from even when she was in uniform. Min was also Suki's second in command, which made her much easier to differentiate. She had been the only warrior besides Suki to have four hair-sticks in her headdress. Katara remembered that she was deadly fast too...

Yu, who was riding in Appa's saddle unlike the other three below, seemed to be the next prominent in Katara's eyes, if only because she was Suki's best friend. Yet there was also an element of striking beauty about her that not even the dirt of travel and prison time could destroy. She had a wild beauty that traveling only seemed to enhance, and was the tallest of all the girls, though Katara couldn't venture a guess as to any of their ages just yet. Yu's hair was also slightly curly and a bit wild, but she had lips almost as full as Suki's that begged to be painted, however, she normally adorned herself plainly with straight, rectangular forehead guards and the like. Despite her normally chaste style, Yu was the only one who had managed to hang onto any kind of accessory. She had her hair up in a loose bun held by a single jade green chopstick so different from the Kyoshi golden ones that it stuck out to Katara like a sore thumb. Didn't Suki once say that Yu's father had given it to her the day she left to join the warriors? Something like that...

Katara had managed to identify the next girl, De, rather clearly. The girl was the shortest and the waterbender remembered the loose way her hair had always fallen when it refused to stay crimped up tightly in its bun. De's hair was heavy and thick, wavy at the ends, and her rosy face was cute and childish, although Katara had no doubt she had seen her fair share of the world. At least, it seemed, the girl had somehow maintained her virtue. Though her hair was currently drawn messily at the nape of her neck, she still had the two bits of long bangs tied on either side of her face with heavy beads – similar to the style Katara had worn herself while staying undercover in the Fire Nation. She could almost see the drooping, triangular head-plate nestling its way inside those bangs. Yes, okay. She remembered De.

The last one, then, had to be Lei. Katara stared at her a bit before finally being able to place her. Lei's features were sharp and refined, even without the painted arching black eyebrows or red eye shadow, though her hair was a bit lighter in color than the others. Katara wondered if she had noticed this detail before, when they had all appeared so similar, and didn't think she had. In fact, Katara had troubles picturing Lei as a Kyoshi Warrior until the girl started talking. It was the voice Katara remembered, deeper than any teenage girl's had a right to be, and very sincere. She was pretty, but she was also strong and every curve of her body spoke of it. After a while, Katara was able to remember the circular headband Lei had worn and pictured the painted Kyoshi features on her noble visage. Adding the stiff bun at the very top of her head, tall and proud above a small, green ribbon with a gold loop finished the image, and Katara locked it into place. Lei.

So... what else was wrong? It seemed she was still missing something when she pictured the girls. She tried adding Suki, but still felt she was coming up short. Shaking her head, she ran through the numbers again. And again. _Wasn't there someone with a head-guard like a sideways letter B? _Katara scratched her head, specifically remembering the unique forehead-plate, yet she was absolutely sure that it belonged to none of the girls present. Frustrated, she tried to picture who it did belong to.

A round face came to mind, a girl even shorter than De. Katara strained to remember, was there a bow in her hair? No, not a bow – two big buns on either side of her head. That was it. They had looked almost like a bow from the front though... She pictured the headband again and... Oh, there was her face! It came when Katara remembered her smile, a bright, secret thing that lit up her whole face when she let it. Surely, if there were age differences, this girl had been the youngest. What was her name? Bai-something... Bu... Ba! That was it. Bao. The last member of Suki's team.

Katara almost heaved a sigh of relief from having strained her mind greatly to remember that much from so long ago... Or at least, what seemed to be long ago. She was embarrassed to admit she could remember all of Aang's annoying little friends with perfect, jealous clarity, but could barely differentiate between the girls who were practically her own age. How sad. But back to the matter at hand. Where was Bao? Because Katara was absolutely certain she wasn't here...

The waterbender had just started to peer over the edge of Appa's saddle again when two thick fingers poked her forehead. She frowned and turned to see Zuko taking a seat beside her. He had obviously just woken from his little nap.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked quietly enough for just the two of them to hear. "You're giving yourself wrinkles, you know."

"Right, because I don't have enough worries at it is," Katara muttered half to herself. "We have to add wrinkles to the list." Zuko's face twitched slightly at that and, for a second, she thought he was going to kiss the wrinkly part of her brow right in front of Suki and Yu. But he restrained himself (if indeed that had been his intention) and Katara had to remind herself to be grateful for this.

She then shot a nervous glance towards Sokka where he sat atop Appa's head, handling the sky bison's reins, and another at Toph's grumpy figure slumped blindly in a corner of the saddle like she usually did during mid-flight, and Katara suddenly wished that she and Zuko didn't have to pretend any more that they weren't... But she trailed off there because, quite frankly, she didn't know what they _were _exactly. "I'm not thinking much, really," Katara decided, answering Zuko's question, since her speculations weren't anything more than just that – speculations. "What about you?"

"I'm trying not to think, actually," Zuko admitted. "That's why I came over to ask you."

"Oh, well then... Um... I'm thinking about the Kyoshi Warriors," she said, and now it was Zuko's turn to frown slightly. "I remember another one of them, but I'm not sure if she was actually on Suki's team or not..."

"It wasn't-"

"No," Katara cut him off quickly, predicting his self-abusive train of thought. "She wasn't related to Min at all. Her name was Bao. I think."

Suki had looked over at Katara's outburst and was frowning slightly. Now she sidled closer to their conversation, bringing Yu with her, and cast a hesitant glance down at her companions on the Shirshu far below. "I've been wondering about Bao too," Suki admitted, keeping her voice down and glancing carefully at her best friend. "Honestly, though, the way you four are avoiding mentioning her, I've been afraid to ask."

"Us?" Yu cut in sharply. "We were afraid ourselves when you didn't talk about her."

Suki's face drew up in worry and Katara could feel that wrinkle returning to that place between her brows as well. "Why would I speak of her?" Suki asked in a forcibly calm voice. "She went with you four."

But Yu was shaking her head. "No, she didn't. Well, she did at first, but... we got into some trouble in prison," Zuko groaned knowingly and Katara flushed, "anyway, long story short, they picked Bao out from us and said they were shipping her off to the Boiling Rock, the horrid prison you were at. We thought for sure that you were both goners with the way the other prisoners talked about the place. But when we saw you last night..."

Suki had gone extremely still. "Yu, I... I didn't see Bao at all. Not once, the whole time I was at the Boiling Rock."

Suddenly, Katara's hand started burning. "Zuko!" she hissed, pulling it out of his steaming grasp.

"Sorry," he muttered quickly, but now all the eyes were on him. Taking a deep breath, he didn't wait to be asked. "Suki, at the Boiling Rock, you were kept in the Upper Level Holdings. Do you know why?"

"Because that's where all the High Risk and 'dangerous' prisoners are kept," Suki replied, her lips twisting over the word _dangerous_ with ridicule. "They mentioned it all the time. Everyone there was treated differently because they were saved for people like... like Azula... to question. So the other prisoners there were all like me: benders, high ranking officers, rebellion leaders..." Suddenly her voice stopped, the last word, leaders, quivering in the air like a snapped string on a musical instrument.

The facts flew together in Katara's head with horrifying clarity. _The Upper Levels are for 'leaders'. Leaders like Suki. Like Zuko and Father and I. People like Bao... they'd go to... to the..._

"The Lower Levels," Zuko practically whispered. "She would have been in the Lower Levels, and you never would have seen her." Suki seemed to be choking over something internally. "I'm sorry..."

Katara was struck with the strong urge to hurl over the side of Appa's saddle. Images from the onetime Sokka had walked her past the Lower Levels were spinning through her mind wildly, seeking out every woman she had seen or heard, remembering each touch, violent or otherwise, that she had witnessed, wondering if somehow, somewhere, she had even seen Bao's face, without its paint or brave poise, and not known it. What if, maybe, she had turned her back on her own friend and left her there in that... to those...

And then she did get sick, just a little, in the back of her throat. The disgusting taste overrode Katara's senses and she snatched at her water skin and pulled the fresh liquid into her mouth desperately. Slowly, the sips began to calm her and when she started breathing clearly again, she realized Zuko's hand was rubbing the small of her back in gentle circles, hidden between them and Appa's saddle, and she relaxed appreciatively into the comfort. When Toph's blind eyes suddenly turned toward them, she was desperately grateful that even if the earthbender had heard, she would've had no way of understanding the horrors of the term 'Lower Level', thus sparing the twelve-year-old the horrid images now plaguing Katara and Suki.

"Sok... Sokka!" Suki called after a minute, her voice cracking a bit. "I… I need a break. Can we call lunch?"

Sokka started to glance towards Zuko but stopped shy, seeming to make the decision on his own after one look at Suki's face. "Whatever you want," he promised his girlfriend, steering the sky bison towards the ground.

June looked disgruntled when Sokka called the halt, but she eventually stopped, though only after reaching the shelter of some trees. Twice already they had needed to make detours to avoid Fire Nation soldiers evacuating the Earth Kingdom, and June was apparently keen to continue evading them.

Suki stood the minute they landed, Yu behind her, and made to dismount. Zuko, however, caught her wrist. "I don't know if it helps, but..." He took a deep breath. "I gave information to some people the other day, people who work with... my Uncle... It's possible that, if she's still alive, she'll be found by them. I'm not sure what their plans are, but... we're headed to join up with them right now, so, if they know anything..."

Suki nodded. "We'll know when we get there." Her face was carefully blank as she stepped away from Zuko, and Katara was suddenly struck by the similarities they both shared, the mantle of duty both were forced to pull around themselves, and the subtle ways the firebender and the warrior woman had begun to understand about each other.

Toph stood abruptly and stretched. "I'll just leave you two alone then, shall I?"

Katara blushed bright red (something the blind girl thankfully couldn't see) and started to make some excuse, but Zuko just scoffed. "Yeah, that'd be great, thanks," he said abruptly, and Katara gaped, horrified.

"I'll bring up some of whatever we're eating," the earthbender added with a negligent wave of her hand. "Assuming I can keep it out of Sokka's mouth." With that last thought, Toph stepped promptly over the edge of the saddle, dropped to the ground, and was gone.

Katara rounded on the prince immediately. "You! Just because I said _once_ that Toph might possibly have some tiny inkling of what was going on between us, is no reason for you to just spell it out like that! Do you know how suspicious she'll be now that –Mmph!"

Katara's eyes flashed with outrage as Zuko's lips engulfed hers. She tried again to protest, but when his teeth raked across her lower lip she promptly forgot what she was going to say. A few moments (or were they years?) later, he drew back, and Katara's desperate mind tried in vain to finish what she had been saying.

"...Suspicious," she muttered uselessly. "Toph will... know..."

Zuko snorted a bit, the first laugh he'd made since the warriors turned up in the middle of the night. "Sorry," he apologized. "I've been wanting to do that all morning."

"But, Toph!"

He chuckled again. "To be honest...That little bugger's known since... Well, probably longer than we have." Katara tried to close her gaping mouth but her attempt was futile. Honestly, it shouldn't be that big a shock, but somehow the fact that someone, _anyone_ besides the two of them, knew – really _knew _– was hard to take in just now. "She was on to us since I kissed you back in the forest outside of Hama's inn," Zuko explained.

"No way!" Katara felt her mind spin as she remembered Toph's special vision and began to connect the dots.

"Don't worry about her telling anyone though," the prince added. "I have a feeling our little blind bandit is going to keep this secret."

"What!" Katara giggled, all previous uneasiness forgotten between the kisses and the laughter. "Are you...You're blackmailing Toph?" Now the whole situation just seemed funny.

Zuko scratched his chin. "I suppose we're blackmailing each other, but it's all in a good way. I guess, in a non-political sense, we're more like keeping each other's secrets."

"Naw, blackmail sounds more like Toph's style," Katara agreed and Zuko smiled. "What do you have on her? It's gotta be something juicy if she's keeping quiet about this! I thought for sure she'd tease me pink or tell Sokka just to get a rise! So, what is it? What's her secret?"

But Zuko shook his head, then waggled – actually waggled! – A finger at her. "Ah ah ah, Sugar Queen. A secret's a secret."

Katara scoffed. _Since when did he and Toph hit it off?_ But, of course, she knew what this whole 'secret keeping' nonsense was really about. "Men and their stupid honor." She sighed as she glanced over at Zuko as the idea of Toph knowing slowly lost its interest. "So... Are you all right?"

"With what?" he shot back, sensing the mood change. "Aang's extended absence? Our speeding trip towards Uncle? My father's new, ultimate evil plan to destroy the world, coupled with his recent overly ambitious, self-proclaimed title? The revelation about the miserable lives my people have put others through? Or were you asking about the one I supposedly killed?" He wasn't angry, but he did sound a bit bitter.

Knowing there was no heat in his words (if nothing else, she had learned to see past his twisted sense of humor by this time), Katara shrugged. "Whichever. You pick."

Zuko made a sound deep in his throat that spoke of unhappiness and twisted away from her, standing abruptly. "Whatever, I'm fine. You want lunch?"

"Zuko?" He stopped to peer back at her as she caught his wrist. "You remember, back when we... When you saved me... from Yon Ra?" She put it as gently as she could, but Zuko, at least, seemed to be perfectly at ease with the subject. "You mentioned that you used to blame Aang for the deaths of a lot of your men, right? Is that why you didn't even stop to think he had never killed anyone?"

"Yes," Zuko agreed, a bit hesitantly as he tried to predict where she was going with this.

"What changed your mind?" she asked. "I mean, when did you realize you didn't blame him for it? When did you... forgive him?"

"I didn't," Zuko answered. "Forgive him, that is. Because, when I stopped to think about it, I noticed that all the deaths... They just happened, because of this whole... situation... we're in."

"The war?" Katara offered, and he nodded.

"If anyone is to blame for their deaths, it's me, because I was responsible for the men I commanded, but... I'm not at fault either. Aang... he didn't do any of that. He _couldn't. _I see that now, so there was really nothing to forgive. I just had to stop and think about it clearly."

Katara nodded. Then, "I think Suki, and eventually Min too, will feel the same way."

Zuko frowned for a minute as he put two and two together, then seemed to realize he had absolved himself of guilt by his own defense of Aang. He blinked twice, swallowed, and then dropped back to his knees in front of her. A moment later those lips were against hers again, chapped from the long days of flying, but gentle this time. Intimate. When he pulled back, Katara noticed they were red and gleaming and wondered if hers were as well. "What was that for?" she whispered, as if talking would ruin the moment.

His lips twitched, as if hiding a smile Zuko refused to give, and he tucked his knuckle under her chin. "You," he answered ambiguously.

Katara started to lean forward, wanting to taste those lips again, now that she knew they could look all rosy like that, but Sokka's voice interrupted first.

"Hey!" he shouted up from the ground. "Katara! If you don't want it, can I have your sandwich?"

Zuko snickered and the moment was broken. He squeezed her hand briefly, and Katara quickly jumped over the saddle to correct Sokka's egregiously mistaken ideas about her lunch.

* * *

Sokka snorted as he awoke from his rest. The wind streaming over Appa's back had taken on a definite chill, waking him. Rubbing his bare arms, he glanced around to see that the terrain had started to change. They were leaving the mountainous area where they had found June and the land was getting flatter and browner. There were fewer trees, more dirt, and even some sand. He yawned and rubbed at his head, recognizing the area of the Earth Kingdom they were now crossing. It was near the border where the city of Ba Sing Se officially began.

Shaking the last bit of sleep off, Sokka crawled forward to the front of the sky bison and leaned over towards Zuko, who was currently at Appa's reins. "Where are we going?" he asked the firebender, but Zuko shrugged.

Sokka looked down below to where Katara, Suki and a few of the warriors were riding Nyla behind June, but decided against shouting down to them. It was possible that this was enemy territory and someone might hear him. Or worse, he might piss off Zuko. "It looks like we're near the Ba Sing Se border to me," Zuko added when Sokka continued to fidget.

"That's what I was just thinking," the Water Tribesman agreed, strapping his sword onto his back. "So, why are we near Ba Sing Se? We're looking for your uncle, right? Why would someone who escaped from the Fire Nation be in Ba Sing Se?"

"It's where we went last time when we were refugees incognito," Zuko supplied.

"Yeah, but back then it was in the Earth King's hand. Now it's..." Sokka trailed off, waving his own hand in search of the proper term.

"Occupied."

Sokka nodded. "Right, occupied. By Fire Nation soldiers."

Zuko's remaining brow furrowed deeply. "I know."

Sokka decided to let the subject drop. There was already tension between himself and Zuko right now, though the blue-eyed warrior was on the receiving end of most of it. It was just so frustrating to see how easily everyone followed the Fire Prince now, when Sokka had worked so hard to earn their respect and had managed to do well as the leader so far. Then Aang ran off and all of a sudden everyone, Katara included, was looking to Zuko for direction. _Natural leader, _Sokka snarled to himself. _That's what Suki called him. I'M the leader! Or, I should be..._

Taking a deep breath, Sokka reminded himself that it wasn't important _who _the leader was right now. What _was_ important was finding Aang, or, at second best, doing all they could to stop Ozai in his place.

"What's that wall?" De asked, pointing off to where a broken, crumbling stone edge ran through the hills.

"Wall?" Toph's voice echoed from behind her somewhere. "What wall?"

"That wall!" De insisted, pointing, and obviously not remembering that Toph was blind.

Sokka opened his mouth to answer her, but Zuko spoke first. "I think it's the wall to Ba Sing Se. It's been beaten down pretty hard. Probably Azula's work."

"Yeah," Toph agreed frowning. "I remember her drill... Good times."

"I think that June lady is stopping," Lei noted, peering around at the darkening sky. "Do you think it's because it's late?"

"No," Zuko denied as he glanced down towards the Shirshu. The beast had stopped around a crumbled section of the wall, a paw raised as it sniffed intently. "We're close." He flicked Appa's reins and the sky bison snorted before beginning his descent.

Sokka watched the ground as they dropped towards the broken wall, looking for any movement or sign of life. Anyone could be down there; Zuko's uncle, or the enemy. But he didn't see anyone. Just a few hills, down one of which a bunch of rocks had recently tumbled. It was at the base of the rock slide where Nyla was now scratching persistently.

"We're going to Ba Sing Se?" Zuko called out skeptically as Appa landed with a cloud of dust.

June rolled her eyes at him as she tugged Nyla away from the rocks before the beast's digging could cause another slide. The rocks didn't look all that stable. "Your uncle's somewhere beyond the wall," the bounty hunter explained as if it were obvious. "Nyla's getting twitchy so he can't be too far."

"But there's nothing beyond the outer wall for miles," Sokka protested, jumping to his feet in Appa's saddle. "The closest entrance to the city is at least half a day's travel from the border."

"Sorry, but this is where the scent ends," June shrugged. "Finding him from here is up to you."

"We're in the middle of NO WHERE!" Sokka protested, but June ignored him, dropping the girls off Nyla's back quickly and spinning the agitated Shirshu around towards them.

"Good luck," she said simply. "I'll send you blue prints for my new home in a few weeks," she added, a grim smile coming to her face. "That is, if you live for that long." Then June flicked the reins and took off into the night.

Sokka swung off Appa angrily, but Zuko landed next to him, a firm hand dropping on his shoulder. "Let her go, Sokka. If she says that Uncle is here, he's here."

Sokka just managed to bite back an angry retort in response to Zuko telling him what to do, and the Water Tribesman settled instead on reminding them of their location. "Hello? Middle of nowhere? We just flew down here, when there was still sunlight, and we didn't see ANYONE. I know. I looked. And I've got eyes like a Fire Hawk. Unless your uncle is buried under these rocks, I don't think he's going to be here."

Zuko swallowed slightly when Sokka mentioned finding the jolly old man buried under a rock slide, but he dismissed the comment. "We'll find him," the prince insisted.

"Don't worry," Toph cut in, jumping to the ground with a thud. "I've got senses like a Badger Mole, and I'm pretty sure that no one's buried alive under any rocks."

"Stop that, Toph!" Katara insisted quickly. "If you stomp around like that, you'll cause another quake and then _we'll_ be the ones under the rocks!"

Toph huffed, blowing hair out of her face and opening her mouth for what was sure to be another Sugar Queen versus Blind Bandit showdown, but Zuko's calm order stopped them before they could start. "It's been a long day," he cut the earthbender off. "Let's camp and start our search at dawn."

"Dawn!" Sokka protested. "That'll be the third day! We can't waste that much time."

"And we can't search in the dark!" Zuko protested, a bit of anger in his voice. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, we're all tired. I'm tired. So let's just sleep."

"I just finished sleeping," Sokka objected, snatching the reins from Zuko. "But if you need your rest, go ahead. Suki and I will search while you all rest."

"We'll help," Yu offered. "Min and I got some rest earlier today. De and Lei can stay and help with camp."

"Fine, whatever," Zuko snapped. "We'll have dinner when you get back, but don't wake me, because I'm not reheating it."

* * *

Sokka glared at the firebender's retreating back as he and the others left to find a good camping spot before turning to face his search team. "All right, warriors," he began. "Let's show these benders what a good, old-fashioned team of trackers can do. Min, Yu, you two take the ground. Look for any signs of a recent camp or a trail. Suki and I will search from the air. Maybe we'll see something from up there that you guys won't be able to from below. We'll meet up in an hour at the base where Nyla was scratching at and go from there."

"Got it," Min nodded quickly. "Who is our target, by the way?"

"A big guy, formerly Fire Nation nobility, and... um... Kind of sneaky. So be on the alert."

The girls nodded and spread out, searching for any signs of recent passing while Sokka and Suki swung up onto a weary Appa again. "What do you think we'll see from the air?" Suki asked as Appa became airborne.

"I don't know exactly," Sokka said with a shrug. "It's just... sometimes things look clearer when you see the big picture. You know, like you recognize a campground in a clearing from the sky that you might not have noticed through trees and that kind of thing."

"Hmm..." Suki agreed with little interest, dropping a graceful arm over the edge of the saddle. "And here I thought you just brought me up here for some time alone." She blew warm air on his neck and Sokka jumped and shivered.

"Actually..." he reconsidered quickly, "that might not be such a bad idea..."

Suki made a deep, purring sound of agreement in her throat before leaning over and pressing her lips to his. Grinning, Sokka deepened the kiss, not really caring for a moment where Appa flew. The sky bison rumbled in protest, but Sokka ignored him. Suki smiled slightly against his lips and pulled back a bit. "You certainly are easy to distract."

Sokka frowned petulantly at her. "Well, maybe if we had more time to mess around during long day trips, we have more time for 'distractions.' Why'd you go and ride on Nyla and leave me up on Appa earlier?"

Now it was Suki's turn to pout. "Come on, Sokka, it's been ages since I've seen Yu and the girls. I've been worried sick!"

"I know," he said quickly, running a soothing hand over her shoulder. "But I'm your boyfriend, right? So I get to be jealous."

"Your reasoning is always so ridiculous," Suki grumbled, but she leaned in for another kiss anyway.

But as the full, red lips came in to meet his, something caught his eye. He jerked to the side, out of Suki's line of fire, to get a better angle on it. "What's that?"

"Hello? Trying to kiss my jealous boyfriend here!"

"No, those rocks over there. Look. The ones off the side... They look kind of funny..."

Suki stuck her jaw out as she glanced over the landscape. "Sokka, they look like rocks. Why are you looking at rocks on a starry night when you're up here with me anyway?"

"Wait! There it is again!"

Suki heaved a deep breath as if drawing in patience as well as air. "What, Sokka?"

"They like... totally sparkle!"

"Really descriptive. Sparkling rocks?" She considered this for a moment, sarcasm fading away. "What, like gems?"

"No. Hold on, let me pull Appa around. You can only see it from a certain angle..." He tugged on the reins, ignoring the great sky bison's groan, until he had an ideal position. "Okay... put your head right... here!" He guided Suki's line of sight toward the correct direction.

She looked at the rock face for a moment, then sighed. "Sokka, I don't see anything. Just rocks."

"No, no! You have to wait for the moonlight... Come on, moon!" he cried, waving his hand as if he could control the heavens. "Shine for me again!"

Miraculously, it did. Suki gasped as the moon beams caught on the cliff surface for a moment, sparkling in the reflected particles of a quartz vein running every which way across the tumbled rocks. "What is it?"

"It's a picture of some kind," Sokka considered. "But it looks all... weird. See, there and there? That kind of looks like circles. Do veins in rocks usually go in circles?"

"I've never seen that before," Suki admitted in a whisper.

Sokka nodded. "Exactly. This is the work of earthbenders. That's the only explanation."

"But... What's the picture supposed to be? It doesn't make sense... Just a bunch of circles, none of them connected... Why would earthbenders make something so abstract? It can't have been easy..."

Sokka stared at it for a while longer, rubbing his chin, the moon fading in out and behind the clouds, leaving the rock to sparkle at random intervals. "So... Rock slide... Quartz picture... Earthbenders... Missing fat man..."

"What if the rock slide ruined the image?" Suki exclaimed. "Like, there was an actual picture, but then the rocks fell and ruined it!"

"Of course!" Sokka whooped. "Those three pieces, they fell out! Right there, and there. They should be up there, and that one on the right should be over... Then it would be something more reasonable. Everything would line up..."

"What is it?" Suki marveled, trying to imagine the complete image while waiting for Sokka's explanation.

"I've seen it before..." His blue eyes sparkled in the moonlight like the quartz, his wild intelligence throbbing within them. "I know what it is!" he snapped. He reached for his pants, whipped off his belt buckle and held it up. "Here! See? It's a lotus!"

"What does it mean?" Suki asked after a moment of staring between the warped image sparkling on the tumbled rock edge and the clear cut emblem on Sokka's belt buckle. "Why do you have a Fire Nation belt designed after something earthbenders put on this rock ages ago?

Sokka shrugged as if it didn't matter, and in fact, it didn't. All that mattered was that the puzzle was coming together for him. For whatever reason, there _was _a lotus on that cliff, or there once had been… What did that mean about Iroh?

"Sokka? Sokka, where are we going?"

"Down," Sokka said, flicking Appa's reins. "The girls will be meeting us at the base of the rock in just a few minutes, and then I want to get a closer look at the flower-thingy."

"Sokka, where did you get the belt?" Suki pressed.

"Ah… a friend of Zuko's on Ember Island gave it to me," Sokka dismissed her.

"Fire Nation!" Suki gasped. "So this might have been a trap of some sort then?" She frowned at the caved-in rocks that seemed ready to tumble murderously downward again at the slightest provocation. "Or might still be," she considered.

Abruptly, she reached over and snatched the reins from Sokka's grasp, tugging sharply to angle the great sky bison back towards the starlight. "Suki!" Sokka snapped in annoyance. "What are you doing?"

"Let's look before we leap, hmm?" She gave her boyfriend a small wink. "All the clues will still be there when we land, so let's just scout it all out from the sky first. No need to be impetuous."

"No need to boss me around," Sokka grumbled, but he let it go as Appa swept up over the crumbling precipice.

"Look at that," Suki whistled as the bison continued to ascend. "There's a hollowed out hole in the top."

"Who cares?" Sokka pouted. "It's tiny."

"Do you think it's a cave?" Suki asked, leaning over one of Appa's horns for a closer inspection. "Maybe it was a safe hold of some sort, once?"

"If it is, it's empty now," Sokka dismissed her. "I can see grass at the bottom."

"I wonder if the whole thing is hollow…" Suki mused, but Sokka shook his head.

"No way. The top part wouldn't stay up without support. The hole can't be that big. If there were Fire Nation camps in the center, we would see them through the hole." Suki continued to speculate but Sokka tugged the reins away from her grasp. "Come on, can we just go look at the gigantic glowing flower now? I've got a good feeling about that…"

Suki didn't seem to protest this time, so Sokka steered the sky bison down to where Min and Yu were waiting below. "Any luck?" he asked, dropping next to them.

"No." Min sighed. "No sign of a camp. No tracks. Nothing. There are some footprints over where the wall is demolished, but they are all old, and that area is well worn, so it could just be travelers…" She trailed off uncertainly, and Suki puckered her thick lips with suspicion that went unnoticed by Sokka.

"Don't worry about it," he dismissed the other two Kyoshi Warriors. "Suki and I found a clue. Help me climb up here!" He started excitedly for the rock slide.

Min and Yu both frowned simultaneously, the latter of which voicing her concern. "Sokka, that doesn't look too safe… What if the rocks fall again?"

"They won't fall," Sokka insisted, heaving himself up onto the nearest crag in the cliffside. "Why would they put a cave there if you couldn't climb the rocks to get to it?"

"Sokka!" Suki protested again. "This place is probably really old. My guess is that the rocks here collapsed it, hiding forever whatever entrance there was. Yu's right. Climbing them is dangerous! Please!"

But Sokka continued to scramble up the cliff face, pebbles tumbling away beneath his feet. "Don't worry, Suki!" he called back to her. "I'm a great climber! And I'm pretty sure at least one person is still using this hideout."

"What?" Min gasped, surprised.

"Iroh," Sokka concluded sharply. "That sniffer-creature led us right here, and then tried to dig. There's a lotus sparkling on the rocks. Zuko's Uncle's friend on Ember Island gave me a lotus belt, and Master Piandao gave me a white lotus Pai Sho tile," he ticked the clues off on his fingers. "There's something fishy going on, and Sokka never leaves a mystery unsolved!"

"There's something dangerous going on, Sokka," Suki gave a final attempt, but she was ignored. Huffing unhappily she started after him. "Urgh! Come on, girls. Before my idiot boyfriend crushes us all beneath the mountain."

The Kyoshi Warriors climbed gracefully up the rocks after the scrambling boy, but Sokka persisted, reaching the top of the slide ahead of them, and stopping. "What's there?" he heard Min call up to him.

"This, I think, is where the center of the lotus flower was. The sides were collapsed in, but the middle was still just around here…" He started running his hands over the stone.

"What are you looking for?" Suki asked, coming up next to him, slightly winded.

"I don't know. But this is the center, right? And the top of the rock slide. If there's anything here to find, it will be here."

"What about this?" Yu asked, pointing at a small hole in the rock face.

Suki made a sarcastic comment behind him, but Sokka ignored it, scrambling excitedly over to the surprised Yu, his face bright, and shoving her aside. "That's IT!" he exclaimed. "This has to be it! Don't you see?"

"See what?" Min asked, poking her head in, now caught up in the excitement a bit.

Suki leaned in too, looking cautious, but curious. Taking a deep breath, Sokka pursed his lips and blew into the gap Yu had discovered. A few loose rocks and dust tumbled out, leaving the perfect, indented shape of a lotus.

"Another one," Suki frowned, but Sokka was way ahead of her.

"Not just another lotus," he concluded. "A lotus in the exact same size as my belt buckle." He once again whipped off the item, holding it up in the moonlight to examine.

"This is too suspicious…"

"Ah ha!" Sokka exclaimed, turning the buckle face in and slapping it against the rock. He grabbed onto the buckle with his fingertips, using the part that held the metal clasp to the cloth of his belt, and turned it, twisting it sideways like a key. Beneath the buckle, the rock moved too, turning sideways. There was a grumble of the earth, then, a small tremor, and they all stepped back to watch as one rock above them fell into the small gap the twisted area left open, and then a larger fell into its place, and so on and so forth, until the entire rock face gave a great grumbling lurch and began to cave in on itself. "Uh oh…"

"Rock slide!" Suki shouted, grabbing Yu's head and forcing them both to the ground. "Get down!"

Sokka and Min also lost their footing and dove to the earth, covering their heads lest the falling boulders come down on top of them, but Sokka kept his eyes peered on the rocks. "No, wait…" He started to rise.

"Sokka, stay down!" Suki barked, but a huge grin was now washing over the Water Tribesman's face.

"Look, it's all coming together! Look!" He pointed at the glimmering lotus design, and, indeed, as each rock fell, it fell not out of place, but into more proper alignment with the other stones. The picture was reforming. And, in the very center, just above the stone with the key hole, an open space was appearing. "It's a cave!"

The rock face stopped trembling, and while a few stones had shaken loose, the area where Sokka, Suki, Min, and Yu stood was completely clear of all rubble. "A cave?" Min wondered, perplexed. "What's a cave doing here?"

Sokka's eyes sparked madly. "Maybe there's treasure!" Suki smacked him brashly upside the head and he glared at her.

"Or maybe there are Badger Moles!" Yu exclaimed, delight apparent in her voice.

"Maybe the old man's here," Suki corrected.

"Oh, right," Sokka grumbled. "Well, why don't we go see?" He gestured up towards the cave.

Suki hesitated. "Shouldn't we wake Zuko and the others?"

Sokka stiffened. "Wake Zuko?" He realized his voice was very flat, but he couldn't help it. It stung that Suki, his _girlfriend_, wanted to go back and wake up Zuko. "You don't think _I _can handle exploring a cave?" he snapped. "After all, I _did _find this, while Prince Zuko was snoring away down there!"

"I just meant-"

But whatever Suki had meant to say was lost in the loud rumbling of rocks above them. "ROCK SLIDE!" Min screamed, this time for real. "Again…"

This time, rocks really were pouring out of the mouth of the cave, straight down the pile on which Sokka and the Kyoshi Warriors now stood, intent on crushing as many of the would-be explorers as possible.

"Get out of the way!" Suki shouted, grabbing Yu's hand again and pulling her to the side to duck beneath a small outcropping. Then, "Sokka, run!"

Sokka, who had been right in the center of the cave, scrambled down the rocks in a desperate attempt to get to the bottom ahead of the falling stones. Min was beside him part of the way before she dived aside, grasping onto a small tree the stuck out of the rocks like shrub. "Look out!" she called, and Sokka dodged out of the way of the stones with a fearful squeak.

Avoiding the tumbling boulders made Sokka look like he was doing a weird dance, but he did manage to stumble his way to the base of the cliff, collapsing in a disgraceful heap just out of range of the falling rocks and scrambled off to safety.

"You see, Sokka?" Suki protested from up the cliff. "It's dangerous!"

"Wait, look!" Yu pointed back up towards the open mouth of the cave. "There's someone up there."

Sokka turned his eyes to the blackness, and, sure enough, the shadow of a person disappeared back into the darkness. "What?" he started to ask, taking a step back towards the precipice, but that was a far as he got.

"They've seen us!" A voice echoed through the archway, and then fire shot out of it.

"Watch it!" Min called, golden war fans suddenly in her hands as she dodged out of reach of the fire.

Suki and Yu backed away from the flames as well, Yu reaching for her sword. Sokka let out a squeal, batting a small spark away as it tried to ignite his shirt. "Who's up there?" he yelled, drawing his own black blade.

"That's what we should be asking you," a second shadow yelled down, taking a fighting position at the edge of the cave. "Who knocks at the Stone-Wall Gate?"

"Uh… what?"

The shadows vaulted into action as if Sokka's response was taboo in nature. Emerging from the darkness, two masked men came forth, garbed in simple yet elegant clothes. "You are not one of the enlightened ones… trespassers."

Rocks and earth trembled around them, echoing the graveness in the shadow's words.

Sokka didn't seem to pick up on the ominous nature of the man's words. He just continued scratching his head confusedly as he tried to make heads and tails out of his accuser's sudden arrival. "Uh, sorry about knocking down your little rock thingies, but if you would just let me explain..."

The two men glanced at each other, and nodded, as if deciding silently there was nothing left to discuss. Without further ado, the shadow warriors moved to attack. They fell into a coordinated assault that the Kyoshi Warriors moved to intercept. Fans met blades and the Water Tribesman groaned.

"Oh, c'mon! Why does no one want to talk anymore?!" Sokka grimaced as he threw himself into the fray.

* * *

The former Prince of the Fire Nation was tired. The day had been long, the trek had been difficult, and only now when they were so close to uncovering what they needed to find had Fate intervened on their behalf once more to create a little road block.

Frustrated, Zuko used far more water than was strictly necessary over the towel he was preparing for himself. He considered warming the wash cloth, but decided against it. He might as well enjoy its cooling touch, especially in light of the annoying companions he had left in the camp just paces beyond a few thick trees. Slowly, he wiped the moistened towel around his face and neck, feeling its cool embrace against the summer wind's hot breath, and trying to forget it all for a few seconds and just relax.

"Hey."

A small hand gently patted him on his head.

"Hey."

His reply was, naturally, lethargic in manner.

The lovely vision of Katara came into view as she crouched right next to him, her smooth hands slowly bending the spilled water out of the earth and back into her pouch.

"Been a long day, huh?" She smiled at him.

"And it's only going to get longer still," Zuko found enough energy to give off a small smirk.

She laughed slightly, and Zuko found himself longing to hear more of the melodic sound. Then her eyes turned on him a little more knowingly. "What's wrong?"

He frowned. "Nothing. Why?"

"You're not sleeping yet." A hand brushed up to his forehead, casually resting against part of his scar like it was something normal as she tested his temperature for fever. The touch sent shivers down his spine and he took a step back. "Are you nervous about something?" she asked when he shuddered. Then she quirked an eyebrow. "Your uncle?"

Zuko cleared his throat quickly. He was in no mood for Katara's coddling. "How's everyone doing?" he asked nonchalantly, quick to change the subject.

Her ocean blue eyes met his for an instant, but she decided to let it go. "Toph is already crawling into her earth tent. You know how she is; never bothers to help us out much– I mean... She's just tired I guess." She grimaced ruefully at her slip of words and Zuko resisted the urge to grin hugely at the sister-like squabbling between the two girls.

"And your brother?" Zuko continued instead, splashing more water on his face to hide the smile.

"Sokka's still on his little patrol trip with the others. They should be getting back now."

"Your brother..." The prince stopped and shook his head disappointingly. "He's always restless. Can't sit still for a minute."

"Humph. You're one to talk," Katara teased. "The two of you have got a lot more in common than you think." Katara playfully poked Zuko's cheek with one of her fingers and somehow he got the feeling he was now on the receiving end of a 'sisterly-like' grin from Katara.

"Spare me," he mocked, which caused the waterbender to poke him even harder on the arm.

"Ow," he deadpanned. "Don't poke me."

Katara rolled her eyes, "Oh please. Like that hurt."

"Well..."

But even Zuko couldn't keep a serious face then, especially not when Katara giggled slightly, and laughter trickled out from deep within her. It bubbled over and welled up inside the stoic prince as well. Unintentionally, they shared a laugh that somehow made it seem as if their current mission didn't entail impending doom for the world. If not for that, the prince might have actually enjoyed the moment more.

Eventually, the weight of reality returned to him, and the sobering nature of it stomped out the last of the remaining laughter. Katara quieted with him and sighed as if in understanding. She reached out a hand, sliding it down his arm in a familiar manner he had only dreamed of mere days before, and drew him to his feet. "Come on, your highness. Bed time."

"Um... if you say so," he mumbled, wrapping his arms around her and letting his nose sink into her thick hair for a moment. She in turn did not pull away. He sighed. She had been just what he needed, and while the water on his towel had been cool, the Southern Waterbender was far better on his skin. "Sleep beside me?" he whispered as they approached their bedrolls at the end of the peaceful campsite, their companions already asleep.

Katara hesitated and he felt her stiffen in his arms, but then she softened. "Just for a bit," she agreed, pulling away to get her sleeping bag.

Zuko yawned and stretched, allowing himself to feel how weary he really was, then flipped onto his own blanket and waited for her to settle next to him. In a moment, her familiar presence was there, pressed lightly against his side, with all appearance of innocence, he was sure. He smiled, realizing that despite the horrible times the world was facing, he'd been smiling more during the past several days than he had in a long while. He just wished his biggest worry was his sore cheek muscles, and not... _Don't._ _Think about him, and all the rest, in the morning_. He pushed thoughts of his uncle away...

Sleep took him...

And then all of a sudden, a rumbling and the searing presence of heat broke them out of their blissful little world.

"We're being attacked!" Toph's warning rang out pointlessly through the rising camp as she smashed out of her earthen tent.

Katara sat up with a start next to him, eyes wide for a second as fire flared around them. "What was that?" she asked rather redundantly, rising to her feet and readying herself in a waterbending stance.

"I'm pretty sure that whatever it is, we both know where it came from..." Zuko glared as he stood back to back with Katara as a blazing wall of ember and flame began to engulf the camp.

Outside of the inferno's circle, the two of them could make out shadows in a distance coming closer towards them, waving weapons and shouting. A particularly comical and very familiar yell gave away the source's identity.

"Sokka," Zuko and Katara both concluded.

"Incoming!" Lei shouted a warning.

Out of nowhere, fire and earth struck out to incinerate and crush the little camp, and Katara leaped into action beside him. The flaming arc streaking towards them was deflected by tendrils of water, steaming away uselessly as Zuko turned to meet the second onslaught. Though they couldn't see _who _was attacking, a pillar of earth exploded under the fury of Zuko's flames regardless of which bender had caused it.

As the steam and rubble cleared, Zuko scanned the night for the attackers and found them easily this time. A dozen or so men and women rushed out, all garbed from head to toe, some benders, some warriors, all looking dangerous. "We've got company!!!" he shouted.

"My turn!" Toph yelled as the remains of her earth tent blew out in all directions, each slab of rock streaking towards an enemy. The blind earthbender cracked her knuckles in excitement. "Finally! A surprise attack! I've been aching for something like this!" The petite Bei Fong heiress grinned maliciously.

Zuko's mind once again was filled with the sense of excitement and dread as his body steamed with heat and fury, demanding that he make the first move. But in the middle of all the adrenaline, Zuko's thoughts finally processed what was happening.

The ones who attacked them were benders. Benders from all the different nations, it would seem.

And he wasn't the only one putting two and two together.

"Toph, wait," Katara stopped the glowering girl with a calm hand on her shoulder. She turned to their attackers, "What's going on? Who are you people?" Just what Zuko wanted to know.

"Those who do not possess the knowledge of the guarded gates should hold their tongues!" someone snarled back.

That was apparently all the answer they would get.

Two powerful streams of water shot out of the trees at them from benders unhindered by Toph's previous earth attack. Waterbenders then, Zuko added a nation to the list. With shadowed fists, they catapulted the raging geyser towards the Kyoshi Warriors. Just as fast, Katara shaped her own indomitable wall of water just in time to shield them from the powerful assault. Droplets of water cascaded and splashed around the camp ground, raining out the fire in an intense mist that had both friend and foe gaping.

"Waterbenders?!" The shadowed bender shouted in surprise as Katara gave the prince and equally confused look.

"Wait! This has all been a misunderstanding!" But Zuko's voice was drowned out as steal glinted in the moonlight.

"I said wait, damn it!" Zuko launched himself forward, meeting three of the assailants head on.

Beside him, the Kyoshi Warriors De and Lei moved to intercept two more, and the unlucky attackers found themselves quickly disarmed and disabled. A simple earth pillar moved beneath Zuko, startling him for a second, but he managed to dodge the clumsy attack of one of the earthbenders. Using the momentum of the earth attack to launch himself, Zuko leaped into the air and landed in the middle of the group. Caught by surprise, the warriors tried to turn on him, but Zuko had just enough time to slide his feet under them and proceeded to sweep all three in single revolution. They tumbled down in a pile of masked faces with blue eyes. Zuko forced himself not to think of other battles against masked waterbenders...

A body then flew all the way from outside the circle of fire as if launched. It screamed and rolled when it hit the ground a few feet away from him. Small bits of blue fabric were singed as the tumbling figured righted himself. "I _really_ hate firebenders." Sokka used his black space sword as a crutch, using what remained of his strength to pull himself up.

"You! This is all your fault, isn't it?" Zuko growled under his breath as he parted a wave of fire someone sent towards the two of them.

"I feel fine, thanks for asking, Zuko," Sokka jested in a sardonic fashion, gaining his feet and hefting his weapon.

"Sokka!" Suki and two of her warriors appeared from the smoke like apparitions, taking up guard stances around the stumbling Water Tribesman with whatever weapons remained. They were all covered in soot, but their resolve remained fierce. Suki glanced at the prince. "We should stay together."

Grumbling deep in his throat, Zuko nodded, and the five backed away slowly towards Katara, Toph and the other two Kyoshi Warriors.

All around them the fighting continued as Yu picked off attackers with several throwing knives. Behind them, Katara was pinning down two of their assailants with her favored octopus stance, and one could only imagine the delight that Toph was feeling as she cackled and grinned wildly, battling four earthbenders at once.

"Where are they all coming from?" Katara demanded as soon as Sokka stumbled to her side and caught sight of Zuko.

"Yeah, who are these guys?!" Sokka pressed his obsidian weapon up high near eye level, ready to defend himself despite his limp form.

"I'm guessing they're the ones we've been looking for!" Zuko responded to both their questions as he prepared himself, tightening his knuckles and dropping into the intimidating dragon stance he favored.

"ENOUGH!!!"

A large booming voice overlapped the battlefield and commanded them all the stop and yield.

The masked attackers all halted in their assaults at the order. All eyes were set upon the direction of the great voice.

Through the smoke and darkness of the night, four figures in azure robes with white trim emerged. The Avatar gang was left in a mixed state of shock and awe, and Zuko was positive he now knew who they were facing.

"The masters!!!" All at once, the masked benders fell to one knee in a synchronized motion.

"What's going on?" an elder voice demanded in the same deep tones that had ordered the halt.

"A misunderstanding, I think," a second voice considered.

"Indeed," a third one of the masters agreed.

"Well, my oh my! Look who's here!" This one snorted.

The third one rolled his eyes and spoke disdainfully to his warriors. "I don't see why you men even bothered attacking that waterbender over there. You had little chance of winning. She was my pupil." Katara's mouth dropped slightly, but it was her brother who managed to speak first.

"No way..." Sokka exclaimed.

"It can't be..." Katara finally managed, apparently so surprised that her water tendrils abruptly lost their shapes and sloshed across the ground, her concentration broken.

However, whatever personal relation there was between the waterbenders wasn't the reason for why Zuko's face was now quirked with a nervous grin. He _knew _who they all were from legend alone. "Just the people we've been looking for..." he breathed.

A mad king whose genius was unparalleled.

A master swordsman unlike any other.

A deserter who was once an honored admiral.

A waterbending legend, master over the northern seas.

Yes. They were _exactly_ the kind of people they've been looking for.


	48. Chapter 48:Old People Camp

Author's Note:

_artsyelric: hey, hey, trombs, did you know that my manager at Borders has a sticker that says "No, rabid fanboy, I cannot go out with you, because even if I were not an actor in a fanatasy film, I am eleven and have a lot of homework to do." - Hermione Granger._

_I don't really understand what the problem with her being a fictional character is - I fall in love with them all the time, haha! But I'm still surprised what an incredible fan base Hermione's got. Is it the character, or is Emma just that hot? (not complaining - I like Herms! just asking...) I'm a Ron fan for his character! Rupert's going through a tad bit of a funny looking stage now, but he was a super cute kiddy._

**Trombe: Ok, enough Potter talk for now. You're going to make it sound like I'm a rabid fanboy or something. And if it doesn't start with Star and ends with Wars then I am not a fanboy of it at all.**

_artsyelric: Hey, at least Herms is better than Twilight! (those fans, I REALLY can't understand o.0 )_

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**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 48: Old People Camp**

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"What's going on?" Toph's voice broke the group's stunned silence. "We're surrounded by… old people."

"Not just any old people," Katara clarified quickly, staring up at the dark blue and white clad elders before them. "These are great masters and friends of ours!" The four older men beamed as some of the younger folks who had been attacking the gang rolled their eyes. Katara ignored them as she approached the stoic man and made to introduced them to Toph. "Master Pakku," she bowed formally to her teacher.

"It is respectful to bow to an old master," Pakku acknowledged her, bowing back himself, his long hair drooping over a shoulder. Then, in a somewhat out of character sense of impropriety, the man cocked an eyebrow and grinned merrily. "But how about a hug, for your new grandfather?"

Katara was stunned for moment when the old man held his arms out in request, during which she just stared at the waterbending master like he had grown a second head. Then the pieces seemed to come together and she threw herself into his embrace for the first time.

"That's so exciting!" she exclaimed as Sokka let out a bird-like cry of shock and wonderment. "You and Gran Gran must have been so happy to have found each other again," she added, truly feeling happy for the old couple.

"I made her a new betrothal necklace and everything," Pakku admitted, a bit of pride in his voice. "I didn't think it would be right to take your mother's back from you."

Katara was suddenly all too aware of the empty place around her neck where the betrothal necklace Pakku had made for her Gran Gran, and that her father had given to her mother, normally hung. It was her last remembrance of her mother, and Pakku was right, she would have loathed giving it up. She could feel the old man's eyes pass over the now vacant spot it had always been, and behind her Zuko made a tight coughing sound. She didn't have to turn around to know that his face was slightly flushed and that his hand was clamped firmly in a fist around the Water Tribe necklace he kept on his wrist. _Did I tell him it was a betrothal necklace? I'm sure I did…_ Though back when she had given it to him, it had been a friendship promise, and nothing more, right? _So what is it now? How awkward…_

Thankfully, she was spared from answering her new grandfather's unasked question by Sokka's own joyful greeting. His arms flew over Katara as he launched himself into the old man's clasp as well. "Welcome to the family, Gramp Gramp!" he cried happily.

"As happy as I am to be accepted like this," Pakku said in a dry tone, pushing the gangly young man off him, "you can still just call me Pakku."

"How about… Grand-Pakku?" Sokka whipped out readily.

"I think that's worse than the BoomerAangs," Toph snorted behind him, and Suki chuckled.

"No," Pakku denied simply.

"Ah, come on!" Sokka moaned. "You can't expect us to be so formal with you now that you're family! Isn't that right, Grampy Grand-Pakku?"

Pakku raised an eyebrow in response, but otherwise ignored his new grandson's antics. "Katara, weren't you introducing the rest of us?"

"Oh! Oh, right!" Katara quickly regained her composure and moved on to the next elder. Wild, tangled white locks topped his head, but a neat, trim beard and long whiskers helped hide his scars, though it did little to soften his hard face. Katara greeted him as formally as she had to Pakku, bowing for a moment before introducing him to Toph and the rest. "This was Aang's first firebending teacher."

"Jeong Jeong," the man named himself.

Behind Katara, Zuko's eyes widened a bit. "You're Master Jeong Jeong? The Deserter?"

The man eyed Zuko before speaking. "I don't know why you would call me Master, as I am but a bitter old deserter who hasn't taught a student in ages, but yes, I am Jeong Jeong."

"My apologies," Zuko apologized quickly, bowing. "I have been instructing Aang in firebending recently, and he often speaks of your teachings. It's from him that I learned to call you Master. It is an honor to meet you, sir."

"So you're the Avatar's new firebending teacher then?" Zuko nodded. "Well... good luck!" Jeong Jeong snorted, and Zuko's lips tightened slightly in what Katara now knew to be the prince's version of a sarcastic smile.

Before anyone could ask the obvious question of Aang's whereabouts, Katara moved on towards Piandao, the great swordsman, however Sokka had beaten her to him. The warrior bowed, serious again despite his earlier teasing of Master Pakku. "Master Piandao," he greeted his teacher.

"Hello, Sokka," the man smiled pleasantly. "What took you so long?"

"So long to what?" Sokka asked, confused.

"To find them," Zuko hissed in his ear. "Didn't you say he was the one who gave you this?" He pressed the wooden tile into Sokka's palm, and then bowed to Piandao as well. "Thank you for giving us the lead with Admiral Chan. We never would have found your Order else wise."

"He is a member?" Bumi asked, surprise on his face. "Hum… you think someone destined to join us might have done better on my test all those years ago…"

"Perhaps we should speak more privately if we intend to discuss… our Order?" Piandao suggested. "I am sure we all have a great many questions for each other."

"Starting with, who's the last guy?" Toph insisted as she turned toward Bumi's direction, overriding all 'where is Aang' opportunities very firmly.

"Why, Toph, don't you know?" Katara simpered. "A great lady of the Earth Kingdom doesn't recognize one of her own Kings?"

"Well," Bumi considered, "probably not a mad one any way…"

"_You're _an _Earth King_?" Top asked, surprised.

Bumi snorted a laugh as Katara introduced him. "Toph, this is the King of Omashu, and Aang's oldest friend, Bumi."

"Pleased to meet you, Miss… ?"

"Bei Fong," Toph provided, flushing a bit.

"Ah! So _you're _the trouble-maker I've been hearing about all over my land. The Blind Bandit, the Runaway, the two-time Champion of Earth Rumble?"

"Three-time champion," Toph admitted.

"Three?" Bumi recounted on his fingers, looking quite insane while doing it, with all his white hair poking sideways out of his head erratically and his dirty, un-Kingly nails showing with each finger he counted. "Ah yes… I won a fair bit of money betting on you this last time. I dare say the Governor of New Ozai was sorely disappointed that he bet on the Boulder… Yes indeed." Now it was Toph's turn to chuckle. "I take it Aang found you all right then? He took my advice? You're teaching him earthbending?"

"Yes sir," Toph grinned widely. "Though it's probably the only thing he's worse at than firebending."

"I don't know…" Zuko and Jeong Jeong considered simultaneously, both their voices dry and doubtful, and completely in sync.

Toph and Bumi both snickered as Zuko and Jeong Jeong sized each other up. "My Lords," a voice interrupted as an earthbender clad all in black stepped up to King Bumi. "It's only a few hours until dawn. What do you intend to do with these… intruders?"

"Intruders?" Piandao repeated. "No. This is our newest member, Sokka, and he has brought us powerful allies." The swordmaster brought a hand to rest on Sokka's shoulder.

"Now, Piandao," Jeong Jeong interrupted, "as good as it is to have faith in your student, you know as well as any of us, he must pass our test before being accepted."

"Did he not find us on his own?" Piandao insisted, "Did he not open the Stone Wall Gate tonight, with his own ingenuity? And would any question the sincerity of one who traveled with the Avatar's party?"

"Regardless, that is the Grand Master's call to make, Piandao, not ours," Pakku admitted. "And Bumi's man is correct, we should move this inside."

The earthbender bowed and nodded, moving back into the trees to set up what had been the gang's attackers as a kind of honor guard instead. Katara and the rest quickly gathered up their belongings and De grabbed Appa's reins. Used to moving at any moment, they were ready to go in moments, and were following the old folks only minutes later. Piandao glanced around the younger group as they began moving back towards the newly revealed cave. "I'm afraid you have us at a bit of an advantage," he admitted. "You know all of us, but we don't know all from your party just yet."

"And we do have to insist you tell us," Jeong Jeong added. "You must declare yourself before entering the Stone Wall Encampment."

"Oh," Katara flushed quickly. "Sorry. You all know Sokka and myself, of course. And Appa," she added, glancing fondly back at the beast. "The girls are Suki, De, Lei, Min, and Yu, all Kyoshi Warriors who have been fighting the Fire Nation as long as Sokka and I. Toph Bei Fong, as I'm sure you've all heard, is the Avatar's earthbending teacher, and Zuko."

Katara stuck his name in quickly at the end, hoping that it might slip by and not cause a stir. Unfortunately that would not be the case.

"Crown Prince Zuko?" Pakku asked, surprise in his voice.

Jeong Jeong and Piandao both looked over, though neither seemed very surprised. They must have figured it out from the scar alone. They both were, after all, from the Fire Nation.

"What has the world come to when the Crown Prince of my homeland has bowed to me in such a manner a moment ago?" The Deserter laughed at the irony of the picture. "I often wondered what kind of man you might be, one who can defy his father and lord. I see my faith was not misplaced. It is an honor to finally meet you, Prince Zuko."

"As it is mine," The old swordsman chimed in.

"Well, my boy," Bumi grinned widely, "we've been expecting you, too."

Katara was surprised. _They were expecting Zuko? Isn't he their enemy? Or do they already know that he changed sides? But even so, why would they be expecting him then?_

Suki seemed to be thinking along the same lines. "Wait, you were expecting both Zuko and Sokka? Who exactly are you?" she asked them. "This Order – why are you expecting us? And, if you were expecting us, why attack us when we find you?"

"Ah… That was our mistake," Piandao apologized. "Or Sokka's, really. He didn't give the password, so it was only natural that those who hadn't met him would think him an intruder."

"We do have a very large amount of people gathered here," Jeong Jeong agreed. "Not many of us gather together for such a single purpose, and so not everyone knows all the other members of this group. Except the Grand Lotus. That is why it is HE who must approve your initiation."

"And how do you all know each other?" Suki persisted curiously.

The four older men glanced at each other, obviously wondering just how much information to reveal just yet. The younger folks were obviously trustworthy, and the older men were ranked high enough to reveal whatever they wished, but until Sokka, at least, was initiated, it was apparently just against regulations to say much.

"All old people know each other! Don't you know that?" Bumi answered quickly. "It's one of the benefits of living so long! Just ask Aang!"

"Aang's not old," De protested.

"Then why do we all know him?" Bumi asked back.

De frowned, and Katara saw Zuko and Toph doing the same. She sighed. "Bumi and Aang knew each other as kids. Remember? He's actually one hundred and twelve years old right now. But Bumi, that doesn't make him old. He may have been born that long ago, but trust me, Avatar or not, Aang is still… well, Aang. Twelve years and all."

Zuko nodded crisply to himself as if remembering, and Toph blew bangs angrily from her face, apparently dismissing the thought. Bumi just shrugged, as if to say no opinion of hers would change his mind on Aang. After all, he had known the boy longest!

"So, Bumi, how did you end up escaping your imprisonment in Omashu?" Sokka asked.

"Escape? I didn't escape," Bumi denied. "Everybody else escaped." He waved his arms dramatically. "There I was back in Omashu, waiting for just the right moment. I didn't know what or when, but I knew I'd know it when I knew it! Then there was… an eclipse! And I said to myself, 'That'll do it!' Using my face, I earthbended enough rock to free myself from the metal cage, and then set about wreaking havoc upon my city."

"Weren't there guards?" Yu asked, surprise wrought on her face.

"Of course there were," Bumi admitted. "But, to my great pleasure – and their tremendous horror, you can be sure – they apparently could not firebend so much as a puff of smoke. Not with the sun completely blocked out by our lady moon!"

"No way!" De gasped, and Katara was forced to remember they had been prisoners during the Day of Black Sun and the failed invasion attempt.

"Poor, dumb soldiers," Zuko grumbled.

"Indeed," Bumi nodded. "I told them I was taking back my city, and it was payback time. Anything remotely Fire Nation I ejected from my city. Forcibly. Sent buildings flying right over the walls, I did. Oh, and that grand statue of your father?" he added conspiratorially to Zuko. "I…" The king's voice trailed off as he leaned over to whisper in the firebender's ear, while Toph (never one to be left out) leaned in to eavesdrop.

"You didn't!" Zuko gasped a moment later.

Toph roared in laughter. "That's great!"

"Isn't it?" Bumi agreed. "Then I knocked the whole thing over – and believe me, it was HEAVY! But I did it, and it tumbled out of my city. Smashed up a few shops and such on the way, but those things can be fixed. It bounced over the wall, and knocked down the bridge the Fire Nation soldiers had built, trapping all the fleeing troops on the other side of the ravine, where their fire would do them no good, even when it returned to them. I settled myself in, found my stash of rock candy, and set about fortifying the city again. When I was sure it was safe again from all but earthbenders seeking refuge, I left a friend in command and came here, to answer Iroh's summons and see what else I could do to help with the war."

"Wow!" Suki gaped. "You took back your whole city all by yourself!"

"You know what? I like this guy. I like this guy a lot." Toph grinned.

The mad king chuckled ever so slightly before returning to business."So, what about you guys?" Bumi asked curiously. "Did you do anything interesting on the Day of the Eclipse?"

Sokka and Zuko both shared a look, and despite their current stiffness towards each other, Katara could almost see the thoughts flying through both of their minds. The two friends were quiet for a moment, during which Katara was sure Sokka was remembering the invasion he so cautiously planned, and Zuko the moment he must have confronted his father, and left the Fire Nation forever. Then Sokka shrugged. "No…not really."

"Who knocks at the Stone Wall Gate?" a voice called suddenly.

"Ah, formalities," Bumi sighed, stepping up the fallen rock slide down which Sokka had tumbled down earlier that night. "The longer I have been King, the duller they seem to have become…"

"Now, your Highness," Piandao chided with a familiar, teasing air about him. "This is one ceremony I find particularly lovely."

"Don't call me Highness," Bumi wheezed. "How many times, Piandao, must I tell you to call me by my name?"

"When my hair is as old and grey as the rest of yours, perhaps then I will address you so. Old I may be, but I am not ancient," Piandao agreed. "For now… I Piandao, knock at the Stone Wall Gate. I am one who has seen our nightly symbol and heard our secrets."

"Nightly symbol?" Katara asked.

"Yes," the wise swordsman agreed. "That is why I said I find this so lovely. Look up at the cliff, and watch. The moon is about to show…"

Katara gasped as the quartz lotus design appeared suddenly on the cliff face, shimmering just as it had for Sokka earlier that night. "That's how I found them," Sokka said quickly. "I saw it from Appa's back. If we'd waited until morning, like Zuko wanted, we never would have known it was there."

Zuko huffed slightly, but didn't answer. "Smart of you to put the puzzle back together," Piandao congratulated his student. "Stupid of you to do so without thinking there would be consequences."

Just then, a piece of rock in the very center of the lotus slid upwards, revealing a cave in its place, and the masters led them up and into it. From all around them, men were appearing, in greens, and blues, and reds, or black too. Women were among them as well, and Katara recognized them as the ones who had attacked them earlier, when Sokka initially opened this gate.

"Put this place back together," Bumi ordered quickly, and a few earthbenders split off from the group and began moving the stones back in a strange order, like a puzzle.

Sokka and Suki both hesitated to watch the reconstruction, but were quickly distracted when the old men volunteered more information.

"I think it's safe to tell them now," Pakku conceded, glancing around at the thick cave walls and their guards.

"I suppose they will have to know eventually," Jeong Jeong agreed, and Bumi nodded.

Piandao cleared his throat again. "We're all part of the same ancient Secret Society, a group that transcends the divisions of the Four Nations."

"The Order of the White Lotus," Zuko concluded.

"That's the one," Bumi agreed.

"The White Lotus has always been about philosophy, beauty, and truth," Jeong Jeong described. "But about a month ago, a call went out that we were needed for something important."

"It came from the Grand Lotus," Pakku explained, his eyes turning to Zuko. "Your uncle, Iroh of the Fire Nation." Zuko's face paled slightly, then softened as his uncle was mentioned, and Katara tried to imagine the strange, mixed feelings of fear and admiration the reserved prince must be feeling at the moment.

"Well, that's who we're looking for!" Toph chipped in, reminding the group of exactly why they were here.

Piandao made a humming laugh in his throat. "Then it is good that we are taking you to him. Through here," he explained, gesturing at the end of the cave, "lies the greatest gathering of warriors the White Lotus has ever summoned."

Somewhat awed, the group began stepping up towards the cave exit, Sokka in the lead.

"Wait!" Bumi called, suddenly pushing himself in front of them, blocking the exit. "Someone's missing from your group – someone very important!" He glanced around them suspiciously and Katara winced. _If they were going to ask, they should have done it earlier! _"Where's Momo?" Bumi inquired, his eyes frantically scanning around for the winged lemur.

"Momo!" Katara choked.

Fortunately, as Sokka had moved in the front, Bumi's question went to him. "He's gone," the boy answered, a bit cowed by the king's intensity. "And so is Aang."

"Oh well!" the Mad King proclaimed, turning away so suddenly from Sokka that the boy had to wave his arms about to keep from falling over. "As long as they have each other, I'm sure we've got nothing to worry about. Let's go!"

"Bumi!" Jeong Jeong called, "not so fast!"

But Bumi was already laughing quite wildly and slamming his fist into the ground. The earthen barrier that blocked the exit dropped and the cool night breeze drifted in. The moon and stars illuminated the sight before them, and it was quite a sight indeed.

Tents were pitched in a great circle, lining the stone walls of the enclosed area. Light streamed in from an open space at the top, filling the cavern with gentle moonbeams. To one side, waterbenders were working a small stream that seemed to disappear beneath the rocky ledge, to another telltale light that spoke of firebenders working a forge. Weapons were stacked around that area: steel swords, bows and arrows, and armor. There were also spears of bone and wood, and large stone clubs that Earth Kingdom warriors sometimes used. Green and blue and red rippled in flags across the area, and rich, brocaded red and gold flowed seamlessly into soft, silken blues and silvers, or thick, velvety browns and greens.

Great, long tents represented what must have been the 'barracks.' Many warriors moved in and out, seemingly with no regard for nationality, and round, single tents represented what must have been 'officer's tents', or whatever stood for officers in this place. It was grand – easily three times the size the Day of Black Sun invasion force had been, and every member of it powerful beyond belief, if their four guardians were to be any example.

"See?" Suki was whispering to Sokka. "I knew there was something fishy about that crevasse."

"But… how come we couldn't see you guys from up top?" Sokka asked Piandao.

"We have to be careful, since the Fire Nation has war balloons now," the sword master explained. "If Fire Lord Ozai controls the sky, he could easily look down and spot this, and we cannot afford to be found out yet. So we camp only around the edges of this encampment, where any above us cannot see in. We are well hidden this way, and if need arises, the earthbenders can always close the space overhead to protect us from projectiles while we escape through another exit."

"You mean like the cave?" Sokka pressed.

"Yes, the Stone Wall Gate is the Earth Kingdom's entrance." Pakku nodded back towards the gate they had come through, and then gestured down towards the waterbenders working the small, underground stream. "That is the Irrigated Gate that the Water Tribe uses as an entrance. If the water there is held back, the cleared path of the stream becomes an exit. Until then, it provides us with fresh water so that we might live here. For those without bending, there is another mark like the one you used on the Stone Wall Gate that will shift levers and drain much of the water from their makeshift dam. It works from both outside and inside, and changing the irrigation like that will allow a short break in the current so that a non-bender may pass through."

"Cool, so every nation has a gate?" Toph asked.

This time it was Jeong Jeong who acknowledged her in agreement. "The sky is the Air Nomad's gate, though we've only one of those known to us, and he can bend, so we don't worry about it. The Molten Metal Gate is to our right. Once again, it can be opened with a key, but was originally designed for a firebender to open. Much the same way as the doors in Avatar Roku's shrine, I believe. From the outside, however, the gate looks like nothing but a stone wall, with two holes and a hidden key hole. The key hole is, once again, marked with a hidden lotus, one that reacts to high temperatures and will only appear when fire or great heat is blown across it. The Irrigation Gate's lotus marking can only be seen if you wade into the center of the stream and put your head under. So, you must be able to swim."

"Smart," Sokka acknowledged. "Most Fire Nation soldiers can't swim, and firebending doesn't really work under water. At least, not well. Hey, why can't Fire Nation soldiers swim?"

"Some can," Piandao pointed out.

"But most don't," Sokka argued. "If they live on islands, and have a powerful navy, why don't most swim?"

"So they cannot desert a sinking ship," Jeong Jeong answered, his voice cold. "It makes them more loyal to the ship they are on, be it air ship or naval, if they can't abandon it." He turned away and started the walk into the camp, obviously no longer willing to brag about the Order. "I lost many men that way."

Zuko heaved a heavy sigh and stared after him.

Nervous, Katara hurried after him, and brushed her wrist against his. She was aware of all the possible onlookers, but she was also just noticing how nervous Zuko was. He was sweating, and when she touched him, she thought his hand might be trembling.

As they reached the bottom of the ravine, and tents began rearing up on either side of them, Bumi bounded a step ahead and waved his arms in welcome. "Well, here we are! Welcome to Old People Camp."

But Zuko's face was pale. "Where… Where is he?"

Everyone glanced at him, young and old, and the tightness in his voice was apparent to all. Piandao lifted a hand to point at a modest looking tent with gold trimming and a white banner outside it. "Your uncle is in there, Prince Zuko. You will all see him in the morning, and he will decide your fates."

"No," Zuko denied, his voice full of command again. "I will go to him now.

Bumi chortled. "Don't be silly, he's doing what all good old people do at this time of night. Sleeping."

"Then I will wait," Zuko answered, striding forward towards the tent without looking back.

His face was set in such a way that it appeared he was marching to his own execution.

Jeong Jeong grumbled impatiently. "These young folks nowadays… Well, it's off to bed with the rest of you. You'll be sleeping in the applicant's quarters tonight, under guard, until Iroh clears you officially. You understand, of course?"

Sokka started, and Katara wanted to protest that she wasn't tired and wanted to go after Zuko, but it was Suki who spoke up. "Of course we understand. We appreciate your cautiousness and concern."

"Good girl," Pakku applauded her. "Now, it's time for all of you to get some rest, before any of you fall asleep on your feet."

Pakku's words, Katara noticed, were true. Lei was swaying on her feet in exhaustion and De was leaning on Min a fair bit. Katara remembered that the Kyoshi Warriors, Sokka, and Suki had gotten no sleep whatsoever yet, and caved. Zuko disappeared from her sight as she allowed herself to be led off along with her group to the small, round tent, filled with beds that were doubled up. Everyone collapsed wearily almost immediately, but Katara snatched up Appa's reins.

"He needs to be allowed to graze, and then I should brush him down before bed. He hates ashes in his coat," Katara explained quickly to Pakku. The old waterbender glanced back at the other three men, but Katara caught his sleeve. "Please, Grandfather? I promise I'll be good."

The man broke quite apparently at the word 'grandfather' and Katara knew she had him.

"I...I suppose this can be overlooked momentarily," The master waterbender coughed.

"All right. Be back in here in one hour, or your guard will sound a search alarm, right?" Katara nodded as Bumi laughed.

"If you need anything," Piandao told the occupants of the tent, "I am pitched near here. Just there, do you see? The tent next to the steel forge. Come and find me if there is any trouble, understand?"

"Yes, Master," Sokka groaned. "Goodnight."

The four elder masters let themselves out, in different states of disapproval and fondness for the younger party already drifting off in their beds. Katara nodded to the two men standing guard outside her tent as Pakku instructed them on her hour of freedom with Appa. One man, with amber-gold eyes smiled at her in a fatherly manner, despite his obvious association with the Fire Nation. The other man, whom she thought must be Earth Kingdom (for once she wasn't actually sure…) nodded at Pakku's words, gave a sort of informal salute (as it seemed the Order of the White Lotus didn't have an official one) and waved her on.

Katara kissed her new grandfather once on the cheek in thanks, then darted off, leaving the surprised old man staring after her. Appa grumbled wearily as she tugged the sky bison back down the way they had come, trying to retrace her steps, but there he was. Soon enough, she rounded a corner and Zuko's form came back into view. She sighed in relief. "Here, boy, graze here for a bit, all right? Then I'll find somewhere to bed you down for the night."

Appa grumbled lazily and flopped onto his back, six legs lolling about haphazardly. Katara patted his belly, then moved to deal with Zuko.

The prince was still standing, stiffly, staring at his uncle's tent. He hadn't yet approached it. Cautiously, Katara stepped up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He didn't jump, so he must have known she was there, but he did glance sideways at her, his brow so furrowed his scared eye was nothing but a narrow slit. "Nervous?" she asked.

"I…"

His face was really white, and he didn't seem to want to meet her gaze. She frowned. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not!" he admitted, as if forcing himself to. "My uncle hates me. I know it." He took a deep breath and focused his frustrations on himself. "He loved me and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned against him!"

She sighed. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I understand if it's between you and your uncle." He eyed her suspiciously. "Really!" she protested. "I know I said you always keep secrets and all – and you do! Or you did, at least, but I'm not here to pry this one out of you."

"Why are you here then?" he asked, curiosity overcoming him.

She cocked her head to side, really and truly amazed at how unfamiliar Zuko was with friends of any sorts. What she had taken before as arrogance and indifference towards others, she now realized was nothing more than inexperience. "I'm here to support you, of course," she answered plainly. "Remember what I said I didn't like about you?"

"That I kept secrets?"

She glared at him, but if he was able to be sarcastic, that meant he was gaining his courage back. "That you try to take responsibility for everything. Just because you're strong doesn't mean you have to carry everyone." He shrugged, but she reached up and clasped his face in her hands. "Any just because you've made a few mistakes doesn't mean everything in this world is your fault. I see that now. I'm sure your uncle will too."

"My family isn't always the most… understanding," he admitted with a wince.

"Somehow I got the impression that your uncle isn't like the rest of your family," Katara pointed out, and that got a small twitch on his lips. Such enchanting lips. She watched intently for another one. "See, I knew it. Just ask him, he'll forgive you easier than I did."

Zuko shook his head, bangs falling over his face and shame coming over him. "How can I? How can I even face him… after what I did…"

"Zuko…" His name held such fond familiarity to it now and he was forced to look back at her. "You're sorry for what you did, right?"

"Sorrier than I've been about anything in my entire life," he agreed seriously.

"Then, trust me, he'll forgive you. He will." Zuko nodded again but didn't relax, so Katara reached up and pressed her own lips firmly to his, as she had been dying to do all night. Her arms snaked around the back of his neck, and she arched her body upwards, standing on the very tips of her toes so that she could press herself fully against him. He moved naturally with her, despite his stiffness, and seemed to take comfort from the kiss. When she finally broke it off, it was to gaze into his eyes and smile herself. "Even if he doesn't, at the end of the night, I'll still be here."

She leaned up to kiss him again, and this time he did soften. He drew her into him, fingers clenching in her hair, his larger hand sliding against her skin as he lifted her up. How long they stood there, entwined together, Katara wasn't sure. Somehow, the fact that they were in the middle of a crowded camp where anyone could see them didn't matter right now, because, as always, time with Zuko was hot and needy, and NOW. There wasn't a promise of tomorrow, the promise of the morning was about as far as they got. There was just now, and the two of them, and how desperately they needed each other's comfort that very second. _So, sleep on, White Lotus. Sleep on…_

But, a too-short eternity later, the kiss faded away. They stood for a moment, his arms around her shoulders, hers about his waist, with their bodies pressed together. Then Zuko took a deep breath, one the Katara could feel through his whole body, and straightened. "Thank you," he whispered, kissing her forehead. "Get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

Katara squeezed his hand once as they broke apart, then stepped aside to collect Appa. Zuko turned on his heel, and marched up to the tent. One more squaring of his shoulders, and then he entered, the flap falling behind him, and… silence.

Appa grumbled, and Katara turned and led him away. The old folks were right. It was definitely time for all decent people to be in bed!

Zuko stepped into the tent, the flap falling closed behind him. "Uncle..."

Snores.

Zuko smiled, fondly and somewhat sadly. He stepped forward off the threshold and onto the carpet, crossed his legs, and sat.

* * *

The night ticked away and the sun rose on the camp, and Zuko sensed it. Iroh, waking with the sun, sat up, and yawned, with his back to the silent penitent, his nephew as yet unnoticed. He glanced behind himself, saw the boy, and dropped his eyes as if pained and unsure how to proceed. Then, as if steeling himself to reject his beloved Zuko yet again, he stiffly turned away and reinstated his refusal to speak.

Zuko started hopefully when Iroh looked towards him, but then the man refused him again. His face dropped into a frown, and he lowered his head before beginning his now well thought out apology. "Uncle... I know you must have mixed feelings about seeing me..." His voice was rough as he spoke, and his hair hung over his eyes as if to shield the unworthy gaze from the fine touches of morning. "But I want you to know, I am so, _so _sorry, Uncle." Here, the tears swelled unbidden to his eyes, and the prince's voice finally cracked, breaking completely over the barrage of feelings he didn't know how to express.

"I am so sorry and ashamed of what I did." The tears were falling freely now, wetting tracks down both cheeks, marred and unblemished. They fall, and are ignored. Zuko couldn't even stand to look at the man now, because tears or not, Iroh still hadn't turned around. The prince hung his head, as if he accepted that he wouldn't be forgiven. "I don't know how I can ever make it up to you, but..."

Suddenly, a hand shot out and grasped Zuko by the collar. He cried out in surprise, probably expecting a blow, but none came. Instead, he was roughly jerked into his uncle's equally tearful and still oddly silent embrace. Iroh struggled to find words, but seemed unable. Instead, he just pressed himself closer against his lost nephew.

"I don't understand!" Zuko cried, surprised and still feeling unworthy. He had thought himself rejected mere moments before, and was now too confused to even hug his uncle back. "How can you forgive me so easily? I thought you would be furious with me!"

"I was never angry with you," Iroh finally revealed as if it were obvious. His hand came up to pull Zuko's head down against his shoulder, smearing the prince's tears and hiding his shame just as Katara had once done back at the Boiling Rock. "I was sad, because I was afraid you'd lost your way."

Buried in his uncle's shoulder, Zuko admitted, "I did lose my way..."

Iroh sat back, holding Zuko at arm's length as if trying to get a good look at him. Zuko's hands fell slack into his lap. "But you've found it again." He paused and Zuko finally looked up and met his uncle's eyes. Pride was shining in them. "And you did it by yourself." Through the tears, both men smiled, Iroh hugely, Zuko almost disbelieving. "And I am so happy you found your way here."

"It wasn't that hard, Uncle," Zuko whispered as Iroh embraced him again. "You have a very strong scent."


	49. Chapter 49:The General and the Princess

Author's note:

_artsyelric: OMG! trombe wrote something! it's a miracle! maybe we should change his screen name to lazarus...  
_

**Trombe: And now we're back. Here you go guys. Finally a chapter done. I'm so sorry it took so long. Well what the hell are you waiting for reading my notes at a time like this? Get to reading, reader. And let us know what you think. We've got another one planned out to come really soon. And thank you for all your kind encouragement about my joining the Navy. Its a promising career and I hope to make the best of it. In the mean time I'm a get to writing as much as I can.**

_artsyelric: boo the navy. it takes my trombe away TT_TT_

**Trombe: Boo animation - no wait, I like animation. Damn. ... You could animate a boat. Then maybe you'll like the navy better.**

_artsyerlic: ... right ..._

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 49: The General and the Princess  
**

* * *

_I never believed the Avatar was to be all omnipotent… for were we not born human?_

_Wherever you may run, wherever you may hide, I will find you Face Stealer! And when I do… know that I will not be merciful…_

_I created the Dai Li in hopes that it might help my people… I was wrong…_

_Sozin… What have you done?_

_...  
_

Awake.

He was startled awake. His breath ragged. His eyes clouded with a misty haze. His chest ached. His mind raced.

What were those voices?

Memories?

Of what? The past?

Perhaps delusions?

Certainly they weren't... real?

As his breathing slowed, sanity returned to Aang's mind. The voices must have come from a dream. It seemed logical, as the last thing he remembered had been falling asleep on the Fire Lord's summer balcony... So why wasn't he still there?

Slowly the young Avatar shrugged aside the thoughts as his eyes gazed upon his surroundings. Whether they were dreams or delusions, he had no time for either. The sounds of birds in the distance made for a familiar call. The hauntingly melodic breaking of the tides told him he was near some beach or some sort. Yet the vegetation around him did not look familiar at all.

He most definitely wasn't on Ember Island any more.

"Where am I?" he questioned out loud as the twelve year old monk scratched his little bald head.

Steadily the memories came flooding back to him like the tides of the ocean he was hearing. He remembered. Of the shouting, the ensuing arguments, the angry words spoken, the awkward departure and then, of course, drifting off on the balcony. And then nothing. Suddenly waking up in a strange, abandoned place didn't seem quite so important as the reality of the previous night crashed over him.

The young air bender placed a palm upon his face to cover the shame he was feeling. He had disrespected a teacher… but most of all a friend. Not only had he directed those harsh words to Zuko - none of which he had ever meant to say - but Aang was particularly guilty of a far greater crime in his mind. He had hurt the most important girl in his life with those same accusing words.

And that was even more painful than anything else he'd ever endured.

No, Monk Gyatso would not have approved of his actions during that night. Aang had not been himself.

Yet back then, even through his shame and regret, he'd just been so angry, so vengeful, so-

…jealous?

The word echoed unnaturally through his mind, making the young monk shudder in discomfort. Whatever happened that night he needed to make things right. There was no excuse for his actions - for any of their actions, but he was only responsible for his own. He needed to go back to the others, immediately, and then… well he'd figure the rest of it out.

But to do that he needed to get his bearings straight.

_Right, back to that problem. Where am I?_

"Strange…" he murmured as he stood and looked around. Tall trees, thicker than he was wide, speckled the solid earth beneath him. It was quiet, peaceful, and entirely uninhabited. No sand, no houses, no people. It didn't make any sense. "All the scenery on Ember Island is beach and tropical," he considered, speaking aloud to help keep his wild thoughts in control. "This looks more like a forest… or a jungle."

Suddenly a flying creature came into view, swung in a gay loop, and dropped down upon his shoulder. A huge grin crept up upon the Avatar's face as the furry lemur surveyed the lush greenery around him.

"Momo! Buddy! So you're here too huh?!" Happy to finally notice a familiar face Aang couldn't help but rub the little lemur's head in a friendly gesture. Momo chattered back aimlessly before blinking his big eyes once. "Alright… at least I'm not alone," Aang concluded.

Feeling more determined now, the Air Nomad gazed straight ahead of him. With a wave of his palm he commanded the element he often called friend.

And the four winds obeyed as a powerful gust of blew with tenacious ferocity making the lush grass and the trees ahead of him sway under their power.

"Hmmm… I can bend so I'm not in the spirit world," Aang carefully thought as he narrowed his options.

Knowing he was not in the spirit world was a start. Now all he needed to do at this point was to figure out where he was. A landmark, a high place, anything that would give him a sense of direction, or a clue about how he got there. As soon as he figured that out, he could get back to Katara and the rest and clear everything up.

Grinning with the exuberant delight only an adventurous youth could possess, the Avatar leaped with grace as he ran with supernatural ease alongside a tree trunk. Aided by his bending he jumped and it was not long before he emerged high above the lush green labyrinth and into the domain of the skies.

And what he found made his eyes go wide in amazement.

It was a lush and dense forest in the middle of the ocean. A secret isle it would seem.

He needed to know more. He glanced down at the greenery rising beneath him. Before he disappeared again inside the forest, his eyes scanned for a vantage point. He found one in the shape of what seems to be small hill, mostly clear of growth and the tallest point in the center of the island. Perfect.

He dropped beneath the branches again and bounded off a couple thick branched until he reached the flat, hard forest floor again. Landing down upon the ground he could not contain his excitement as he darted forward towards the clearing, with pet lemur flying close by.

_So if I'm not on Ember Island… where in the world _am_ I?_

As light footed as he was it was a few minutes until he noticed the ground he was on did not feel normal. Toph would have mocked him mercilessly for that, but when he stopped to really feel it in his feet, let his bending sink into the soil, he noticed something even stranger. The earth was unresponsive. Almost completely. And then, faintly, he could have sworn he heard it rumble.

For an island to rumble with no volcano in sight... that was very peculiar indeed.

Wherever he was he knew there was no place else in the world quite like it.

With the four winds guiding the bald monk's feet, he was not merely running but it was if he had sprouted wings from his ankles. Wind whistled in his ears, drowning out the rumbles of the too solid ground, as the Avatar effortlessly made his way to his destination. When he arrived the view of the island opened up before him, and what he saw astounded him.

To either side of the island there was, unmistakably, a wake.

"Either I hit my head really hard... or this island is definitely moving!" Aang gasped out loud as his vision scouted the horizon.

_No._

_There has to be another explanation_, the boy rationalized. Months traveling with Sokka must have begun to rub on the Avatar if he thought he could read the currents of the ocean so clearly. Hoping to channel more of his ship-loving friend's sleuth-like mind, and Aang carefully grounded his care free thoughts.

Momo garbled beside him, and Aang shushed him gently.

Left with only one more option Aang slowly exhaled and slapped his cheeks gently, trying to focus on his next move. Soon a fierce breeze began to blow, and within seconds the boy was gone, disappearing into the air and descending gracefully not back into the vegetation, but towards the clear blue ocean.

* * *

Dawn was here. He could feel it in the warmth of his skin. After all, Zuko was never one to sleep past dawn. Slowly the prince dragged himself awake from his slumber, pulling his warm sheets to the side of his sleeping mat.

Up on his feet the warrior prince stood, disheveled from the encounters of last night. Nevertheless it was day, so it was time to wake. And what a day it would be.

Zuko flipped the tarps of his tent as he made his way outside. Surprisingly, he was not the only early riser in the camp. The Order of the White Lotus was already awake and buzzing. He could hear the sounds of feet stomping, voices yelling, metal being pounded, earth rumbling, and all manner of ungodly sounds for so early in the morning.

But, as he was already up and eager to see what this order was composed of, Zuko found himself compelled to explore for a bit.

The sights he beheld put all his previous conceptions of 'war camp' to absolute shame.

The Order was a well oiled machine. There were no gleaming golden banisters or ornate, even gaudy officers tents. Everything was plain, simple, and elegantly sufficient. Everything had a purpose, each person a job, and every job was being seen to tirelessly. There wasn't even the customary grumbling a large Fire Nation camp usually held. Each man seemed self motivated and personally dedicated to completing their task perfectly.

In once corner he saw blacksmiths hammering away to forge weapons and iron materials while firebenders kept their furnace smoldering hot trading smiles with passing Water Tribe sailors without breaking the rhythm of their work. In another place, scouts and trackers from all reaches of the globe were gathered, planning out the hunts and mapping out reconnaissance that still needed to be done. He even saw waterbenders carefully condensing the morning dew and waters of the creek into the water jugs that needed to be refilled and hauling it towards the cooking tents.

There was no doubt about it. This was an army. A well drilled and discipline one at that.

_Good_. A whisper echoed in his head. Something told him they were going to need all the might that they could muster against the military arm of his home country.

"Its a fine sight, isn't it, my Prince?"

Zuko turned around to find the grizzled old face of the The Deserter, Jeong Jeong walking slowly towards him. Even in the busy camp the old master moved with a temperance and grace only someone of his stature could muster. "A disciplined fighting force unlike the world has ever seen before. Swordsmen of the Fire Nations, Wolf Warriors and benders from the Water Tribes, Unyielding Earthbenders from the Earth Kingdom, all working together flawlessly... It is truly a remarkable sight." A proud smile appeared upon the old admiral's face.

"Yes. Yes it is, Master Jeong Jeong," Zuko replied, bowing once in the formal Fire Nation greeting.

But the grizzled old man did not bow back. "Jeong Jeong is all I am. You will address me as such or not at all. I am no master to be bowed to. Especially not to royalty, boy," the Firebending Master concluded dryly before giving in and returning the courtesy in kind as he too placed his hand to his fist and bowed slightly.

Zuko felt as out of place as he had as a child when his mother reprimanded his manners. "Yes Mas- I mean... Jeong Jeong," he corrected quickly.

"Good." The old man smirked. "You learn quick. Unlike a certain Avatar I knew."

Zuko fought to suppress a wince. "About Aang, that is..." Zuko's answer was cut off short as Jeong Jeong waved the matter off.

"It is not for me to judge or set the Avatar's fate. He does what he does and that should be sufficient reason for me. After all, Avatar or no we still have our own duty to perform." The Deserter continued to walk on, now with the Prince in tow. "And make no mistake about it boy this is war. A war a boy of twelve may have been too soft yet to understand, but war none the less. If the Avatar cannot see it with his own eyes then it falls to us, the old folks and adults, to be vigilant."

"I've come to accept with those terms as well." Zuko understood more clearly than anyone the heavy burden that befell upon them with Aang's disappearance; he tried to tell himself that wasn't because of guilt.

"Then perhaps, my boy, you are finally old enough to join us."

Zuko flushed slightly at the compliment, and nodded. The two continued on in silent agreement before Jeong Jeong spoke again. "I see you have managed to reunite with your uncle."

Not expecting that change of topic, Zuko could only answer with a small "yes."

"....I see." An awkward air of silence clouded the air for a moment before being dispelled by a cough from the older gentleman. "Well that is all and well. The Dragon of the West was no good to anyone moping about."

Zuko barely bit back a shocked 'he was moping?' and tried to school his answer to something less... idiotic. Somehow the only thing that came to mind was a joke. "I don't think he's the type to be moping about anyway, more like the sipping tea and getting fat type." Surprisingly, Jeong Jeong's face twisted in a wire smile.

"I see you know your uncle better than he thinks." Zuko chuckled, and surprisingly, so did Jeong Jeong. "Anyway," the man cleared his throat roughly, as if shaking off his laughter before someone else noticed. "I am not much one to talk Prince Zuko, and I have many a duty to perform, your uncle has seen to that. Therefore, I will bid you farewell, for now." Jeong Jeong nodded to the prince and calmly turned towards his own destination.

"Jeong Jeong!"

The Firebending master turned back quizzically.

"...It's just Zuko. I'm not a prince. Not anymore." Zuko brushed his bangs confidently away from his face, letting his scar show, and knowing that now, more than ever, his words were true and would hit home with the other firebender.

Oddly enough, the old man shook his head slowly while a smirk drew sneakily over his lips. "We'll see about that." Then he turned and once more set towards his course.

Zuko stared after the Deserter for a moment, but couldn't decipher what his last comment was meant to imply. Besides, he knew enough about the old folks his uncle befriend to figure the if the cryptic message had any real importance, he'd discover himself soon enough. Deciding he was better off not knowing, and that he seen enough of the camp to whet his curious appetite, Zuko set off to see to the more important matters of his day. Carefully he retraced his steps as it was easy to get lost in the hustle and bustle of the hidden camp. Upon arriving back he was greeted by a familiar face.

"Hey." Sapphire eyes smiled at him in fond welcome.

"Hey yourself," he found himself answering her casually, a small smile appearing on his face. "Did you had a good night sleep?"

"As good as I'll ever get. I just wished I could have slept more. I don't think I can with all this racket going on." Katara waved her hands vaguely around at the surrounding camp-workers.

"It is amazing isn't it? I've never seen anything like it myself," Zuko complimented as he unconsciously sought to reach out for Katara's hand before reminding himself of their little secret. His hand lingered for a moment before returning to place, leaving the prince feeling slightly awkward at the unrequited gesture.

"So?" she asked quizzically, sitting down upon one of the nearby boulders as if preparing for a long story.

"So what?" He mirrored her actions, seating himself and raising his eyebrow questioningly.

"So how did it go with your uncle?" She emphasized.

"Oh. That." He paused, unsure exactly what she wanted to hear. "Well..."

"Well what?"

"Well..."

"Tell me," she ordered kindly, scooting over to share his rocky seat.

"Honestly it went well," he finally answered as simply as he could.

"That's it?" she demanded, mockingly. "It went well? What else happened? How was your reunion? Was your uncle surprise was-"

"Katara, I don't know what else to say to you. It went well. Really well. My uncle and I are finally reunited. That's all that matters." The former prince smiled to himself on the inside as he said those words out loud.

"Ugh. Men. You never want to talk about your feelings."

She crossed her arms and pouted that face that Zuko knew he could not resist for long. Gently he reached out for her hand and to his surprise she gave it with little to no resistance.

"Katara...Thanks. For last night and everything. I promise I'll tell you all about it later. I'm just happy to know that my uncle forgave me."

"That's all right," she slowly caved in as she squeezed his hand in return. "I can see in your face you're happy with it." Zuko blinked once and tried to wipe his expression blank, which only made Katara laugh and nettle him, jabbing a finger teasingly into his ribs. "Still... You could have at least told me just a little bit," she enticed in a quiet whisper. "Just the juicy parts... I just wanted to know that the great mighty and powerful Zuko can still cry like a decent human being." His face twisted unhappily at the reminder and she smiled triumphantly before sticking out her tongue at him in playful gesture.

"Oh, so that's how you want to play..." He grinned wickedly, grabbing her by the hips, and was about pull her close to him before his brain started working again.

Katara's hand rested squarely in the center of his chest, and though her eyes were dark, almost hungry, they lightened up as she glanced around the campground worriedly.

"We... shouldn't... People will notice," she whispered regretfully.

"Oh... right. Right. people. Sorry." Zuko reluctantly agreed, clenching his teeth in frustration for moment before letting his waterbender go.

"Ahem, anyway," she coughed, straightening and tossing her braid over her shoulder. "I should wake the others up. We have a big day ahead of us." Zuko frowned at the reminder - a big day of planning a war.

"Of course. You... you should do that," he stated halfheartedly as he stood up.

"Ok... umm... I'll see you around later okay?"

Katara gave him that smile that he knew was only reserved for him. That should have been enough. But as the young man had learned in all of his travels that there was no other being more selfish than man. But this was neither the time or the place, so he forced his yearning back down inside him and nodded in agreement and nodded a farewell.

Sighing a deep one the former prince shook his head in melancholic remorse. "You know," he whispered rhetorically to himself, "you could have told her to stay just a little bit, you idiot." Nevertheless what was done was done; thoughts of Katara needed to be purged from his mind now if he was going to focus on winning this war.

He sighed heavily. There was going to be a war meeting with his Uncle in just a few hours, and he knew there was a lot to catch his aged companion up on, and a great many plans would have to be made today. A war meeting of this magnitude would take hours, days even, if they had days to actually spend, no matter how perfect the White Lotus war camp was. The day had just barely begun, and already something told him that the day was just going to get longer.

* * *

Katara prodded Toph with her toe again. "Come on, Toph! Get up."

"Piss off, Princess," Toph hissed, rolled back into her sheets and burrowed deeper.

"Ergh! Fine. Stay in there all day." Katara huffed angrily and tossed Toph's blanket over her head. "Come on, Suki. She can find her own way to the war council. Let's go explore this place."

Katara marched out of the tent and was immediately surrounded by Kyoshi warriors. "Suki!" Yu gushed, rushing to grab her friend's hands. "They have a practice ring for sparring! A sparring ring!" Yu reiterated, excitement buzzing about all four girls. "Can we please go?"

"Think about it," Min sweetened the deal. "There are fighters here from all over the world - every nation! An army camp like this... We'll never see another one, Suki."

"Please!" Dei begged, and Suki laughed.

"All right, all right. We can go." She waved the girls down and looked apologetically at Katara. "Sorry, guess I won't be exploring with you."

Katara smiled understandingly. "That's all right. After all, I wouldn't pass up a chance to test my skills against such a diverse group either."

"Is that so?" an older voice asked from behind her. "Then I suggest you... Think Fast!"

Katara turned as fast as she could, her hand automatically drawing water from the air as she pivoted, and just managed to block the dull shards of ice that were being shot at her. "Master Pakku!" she gasped as the shards hit the ground.

He raised an eyebrow at the water she had drawn not from a source, but the air itself. "New trick?" he asked, and Katara laughed desperately.

"Yes. I've learned... a lot. Not all of it from good intentions, either," she admitted sullenly.

Pakku nodded solemnly, then smiled. "Well, the world can be a beautiful and horrible place," he announced simply. "I think... we should have a practice session, before the war meeting. perhaps you can show me some of these... new moves, yes?"

Katara smiled, feeling as if the murky, confusing feelings about bending she had been experiencing since meeting Hama were all ready clearing up just from talking to her master. "I would like that very much," she agreed.

The man nodded solemnly, as if it was expected that his student would agree to any request he might have. "Good. They why don't we head down to the Water Gate and let these girls scamper on over to the sparring grounds? I think your brother is already there, hacking away boorishly at Pian Dao..."

"Really?" Suki asked, grinning. "Sokka's training?"

"I believe I just said that," Pakku frowned. "Don't you have ears, girl?"

Suki flushed a bit, and Katara snorted. "Lay off her, _Gramps. _This is Sokka's girlfriend, so you two are practically family. Wouldn't want to start out on the wrong foot with her - like you did with me." Pakku rolled his eyes as Katara whispered to Suki, "he told me girls shouldn't fight."

Suki's eyes went wide as all four of her warriors grumbled and shifted into fighting stances at his words. "Well," Pakku muttered unhappily, "I see you've found a bit of back up for your argument, Katara. Are you all benders?"

"Better," Min announced haughtily. "We're Kyoshi Warriors, trained by the Great Avatar herself."

"So I take it you're not just off to the sparring grounds to watch your man, then?" Pakku mocked, making Suki go scarlet.

Katara, however laughed. "Now he's just teasing you," she told the warriors, who relaxed slightly. "He may be a bit hard-headed, but he's a very wise teacher, and I'm sure he realizes by now how useful _any _warrior can be, regardless of the gender."

"Perhaps," Pakku sniffed in intentional stubbornness. "However, only girls continue talking when they should be training. Are you coming, Katara?"

She chuckled and waved at Suki quickly. "Have fun," she told the warriors.

They nodded and Suki grinned. "Goodbye, _Master _Pakku. Have fun splashing around in the water with Katara!"

"And you girls have fun playing with your sticks and fans," Pakku replied in turn.

Both grinned at each other in sarcastic understanding, then turned in opposite directions and marched away.

"Really," Katara sighed, rushing after Pakku. "I think you like her."

He glanced sideways at his new granddaughter. "She could be worse," he allowed haughtily. "Now hurry up, girl. I am on a tight schedule you know. I can't spend all day... splashing around in the water with you."

Katara laughed and rushed after her grandfather.

* * *

Aang gasped as he hit the cold water, then plunged into it with a whirl of bubbles. As his vision cleared he began to make out the gigantic shape of the island... and was shocked at what he saw.

The island was not an island at all. In fact it was a living thing. From what he could make out from the depths of the sea it had legs.

Or at least what looked like legs.

Bewildered and confused the Avatar jettisoned himself straight up towards the rays of the sun, emerging from the watery world and sucking in fresh new air desperately. Momo chattered away at him as he wrung out his clothes. "You wouldn't believe what I saw, Momo," he told the lemur. "Actually, I'm not sure I believe what I saw..."

"Talking to yourself is the first sign of madness you know."

Aang jerked up straight and spun around. "Who's there?" he demanded.

A thin shape stepped out of the trees - the shape of a person the young Avatar had never expected to see again. "Hello Aang! What are you doing all the way there in the water? I bring you this whole moving island and you still decide you want to swim? Oh my friend, truly it is a marvel how your mind works."

"Guru Pathik?!"

Aang was astounded to find his spiritual master upon the beach, a few feet away from him, taking a seat calmly on the grass like it was the most natural thing on the world to appear on a moving island in the middle of nowhere. "The one and the same my friend." The old wizened man smiled warmly.

"Oh am I glad to see you! Where did you go? How come you never told me where you were? Where in the world are we? What is this island?!" the Air Nomad was hyper actively asking as he could not contain the emotions he felt and was clearly visible upon his youthful face.

"So many questions in such a small amount of time. But then again, it always is. Such is the nature of life." The Guru chuckled out loud. "It is good to see you again, Aang." The Guru placed his hand and fist together and humbly bowed.

Aang answered back with a small courtesy bow of his own before hugging the old bearded man, an act which at first confused the old man but reciprocated the hug back with the tenderness of a father whose prodigal son had returned. "I missed you, Pathik." The young Avatar replied in earnest, true to his feelings.

"And I you, Aang."

"I have so many questions."

"I know. Hohoho. I just had a sample of it earlier." Guru Pathik jokingly stated. "I know you have questions, young Avatar. You seem even more confused than the last time I saw you, and it is even more imperative that your mind be clear in just a few short days. It is my firm belief that I can alleviate some of these questions for you but like what you have learned from me before some of the answers you must find yourself. But before we get through all that…"

The Guru brazenly went for a cup and that familiar odor crept up upon Aang's delicate senses. "Would you like some Onion Banana juice?"

"No, No...I ugh…" The boy covered his mouth, desperately trying not to heave. "No I'm good, thank you."

Just then a small flying creature came swooping out of its hiding spot from the trees as it grabbed the banana juice from Pathik's hand and landed upon the older man's shoulder. "Oh. Hello there little friend. And who might you be?"

Aang could not help but smile. He had forgotten how easily animals had come to like the older friendly man. "Guru Pathik, this is my friend Momo from the Southern Air Temple." He introduced the two.

"Truly a pleasure to you my furry companion, delighted to see a flying lemur once more. Ah, the world truly is a remarkable place filled with secrets."

The old man's shoulders shrugged once to acknowledge he was ready. "Very well then. Come. We have much to discuss, you and I. Your furry friend is welcome to join us if he would like."

Guru Pathik slowly stood up and gestured for Aang to follow him deep into the jungle. The two entered and disappeared into the emerald abyss together. As they walked so too had they begun talking about what had happened. They started with Aang's fall at Ba Sing Se, to the failed siege of the Fire Nation capital of li Ming Dhu Shi, to Zuko's redemption, to the very last time he saw his friends. Everything. The bald monk told the Guru everything that had transpired since their last meeting. And the old man listened quietly without interrupting, nodding his head only as a sign of his attention.

"My, my. Looks like you lead quite an interesting life there, Aang. "

"You don't even know the half of it." The airbender sighed in frustration. "Still… that's pretty much the gist of the matter. Everything right now comes down to me fulfilling my destiny which everyone seems to love to spell it out for me."

"And what is your destiny, Aang?"

The spiritual master's question was simple enough, but Aang couldn't answer it. "That's the problem," he finally admitted, exasperated. "Um… that is… well, you know… I mean I'm pretty sure I don't want it involving me killing anyone, that's for sure! The rest, well... that's where it gets foggy."

"I see," the Guru replied in a calmly manner that did not reflect Aang's flustered state of mind.

"Well what do you think I should do?"

"What do you think you should do?" the Guru mirrored his question once more.

"Is this your idea of helping me answer my questions? Cause I can pretty much tell you right now turning my own questions back at me is not helping me get the answers any quicker," Aang insisted with the impertinence all twelve year old boys possess.

"I'm sorry if it seems that way to you Aang but in the current state you are in right now you are in no position to seek your answers. Besides my young friend, while the world has been a better teacher to you then I have been in the past couple of months, it has not tempered your frustrations and insecurities within yourself. Your training was never completed remember?" the older man reminded the Air Nomad.

"So… what are you saying Guru Pathik? That I need to finish my training to get my answers? Because I don't think I have the time to-"

"Shhh," the Guru commanded as he finally came to a halt in a place Aang could barely recognized as a part of the lush forest they had lost themselves within. "Questions and more questions. Your mind is like a cloudy sky. Unclear and uncertain. But before you can even begin to start searching for the answers are you even certain that your questions are the right ones to ask?"

"Well… I… I really don't know," Aang huffed, now feeling truly confused.

"Well then, Aang, we will start there. Shall I ask you… or would you rather like to ask yourself?"

"Huh?"

"This place Aang… can't you feel it? The spiritual energy in this spot…" The Guru fondly pointed out their environment. An empty grove in the middle of a dense forest, with strange hexagonal markings found upon the grassless ground. "It is immense."

Unconsciously the Avatar closed his eyes and sure enough he could feel it.

The deep connection.

The strange feeling, much like a soft, gentle touch along his neck.

It was the same feeling he had before his soul went traversing the spiritual realm.

"Yes… Yeah I can feel it. I think I know what I need to do." A new vigor lit in his eyes; an excitement and surety that had not been there since his departure from his friends.

"Then ask them," Pathik suggested. "I'm pretty sure they wouldn't mind. They are you," the Guru concluded with a chuckle.

Aang closed his eyes...

...and slipped away...

* * *

It wasn't hard to find the appointed meeting. Ask anyone in camp and they would have directly told you where it was being held at the giant pavilion waving the flags of the four nations along with a single lotus blossom in the middle. As if that was not obvious enough. What made it even more clear was the booming laughter of people and the grizzly familiar voice of his uncle laughing and joking with them. Zuko sighed. _Always a people person_, he thought to himself. And so he entered the giant tent only to be greeted by the sight of his uncle, a few of his companions and some Lotus members he did not recognized sitting down upon the giant wooden table having tea and what seemed like a pleasant conversation._ Well they're not talking about war strategies that's for sure_, he concluded.

"And so the carpenter said... That's not my hammer - that's a sungi horn! Hahahaha!" Iroh's laughter could have been heard from miles on end.

"HAAAAA! That's great!" another voice echoed his. "Good one! Oh, this never gets old." Toph laughed maniacally, and Zuko blinked at the sight of the elder man and the small blind bandit laughing together and drinking tea.

It was almost impossible to believe, but there it was, right in front of Zuko. _Maybe she really did meet him before, _Zuko reflected, remembering his conversation with the girl back with the Ember Island players. For the first time, he could picture that meeting.

"Uh... am I in the right place?" he asked sarcastically, stepping into the gathering. "I was under the impression I would be attending a war meeting."

"Oh my boy! It is so good to see you could come join us." Iroh gently gestured for his nephew to take the seat right beside him and the petite earthbender, and Zuko sat hesitantly, eying the two merrymakers with suspicion still.

"What took you so long, Hotman?" Toph asked, oblivious to his attitude. "I've been here for like an hour now." Her tone of voice and the way she politely held her cup of tea contrasted with his mental image of the powerful young Bei Fong - sure she was still sitting like a ruffian, but her hand on the dainty piece of china was almost... refined.

"I was doing... stuff," he muttered, distracted by her taking a sip of the steaming drink. "Anyway, isn't the meeting suppose to start soon? Where is everyone?" He looked around quizzically, hoping to catch a glimpse of the older men from yesterday or other White Lotus leaders.

"Nephew, you do not look for the joy in life. When the White Lotus decides to arrive, the meeting will happen." Iroh grinned broadly as he pour himself and Zuko a bit of jasmine tea, with steam delicately coming from their cups.

"Plus I think everyone's a little bit busy. You know... with a whole war to fight and all," Toph added in true sardonic fashion as she blew some of the steam from her cup. "Not everyone's as prompt as you, Prince."

"They'll be here, they'll be here," Iroh waved off Zuko's worried expression while pouring another cup. "In the mean time... have a little tea amongst family and friends."

"Uh, okay," Zuko agreed reluctantly. "Thanks I guess."

Attempting to settle in, Zuko sat and started mimicking the actions of the smaller bender to his left. What he had hoped for to be a quiet tea drinking session ended the minute he had remembered that his tea drinking associates were his uncle and Toph, a pair he had yet to realized were closer to each other than he had thought.

"So, Nephew, I heard you returned to Ember Island with the Avatar recently," his uncle commented, starting the conversation pleasantly enough.

"Uh, yes. We did." He sipped cautiously, not seeing the trap that was being laid out for him.

"I have always had a pleasant soft spot for that island. Such a paradise. The ocean, the sand, the women... oh, and most of all the plays. Oh I used to love coming to plays. That is before those charlatans ever called themselves actors. Ember Island Players indeed. What rubbish."

Toph snorted quietly. "I kind of thought they were funny with that whole Avatar fiasco thing. But yeah I remember plays. My mother used to take me all the time to Ba Sing Se to watched them when I was little.. .well to hear to be more exact," Toph corrected merrily. "Speaking of which, I was wondering if you've ever seen _The General and the Princess_, Iroh?"

"Sadly, I have not. Not many Earth Kingdom tales reach across the shore nowadays, I'm afraid. Would you recall this tale for me, my friend?" If Zuko didn't knew any better he could have sworn he saw a glint in his uncle's eyes for a moment, as if the man was hiding a smirk.

Toph tilted her head as if remembering the story. "Well, let's see. I believe there was once a mighty and powerful prince. He was destined for greatness. The people loved him and everything and he loved them in return. But there was one greater love he swore himself to and that was to this princess. She was beautiful or so they say, and she was as fiery and as strong-hearted as anyone could be. He loved her for it, and she loved him in return. But that doesn't what makes this story juicy."

"Do tell," Iroh goaded the girl to continue, and if it wasn't for Iroh's twitching upper lip (which moved suspiciously like the man was trying very hard not to smile) Zuko would have let his attention wander.

"Behind the prince was his good friend and teacher, the general," Toph continued, her face also completely devoid of emotion. "These two men could not have been anything more different. The prince was curious, child-like in nature, and optimistic. The general was unsatisfied with the world, uncompromising with his beliefs, and pragmatic. But between the two of them they could do anything. It was said that whatever the prince dreamed the general built. They were like sworn brothers. Until the general fell in love."

"Fascinating," Uncle gushed. "Was it-"

"Who else?" Toph nodded. "The princess was beautiful as well as intelligent. The general had to be a dolt to not fall in love with her, and eventually, with a lot of effort, he managed to win her affections as well, stealing her away from his friend, the prince. But of course one can't simple fall in love with one's sworn princess without any repercussion. The prince found out. Broke his heart. According to the play he vanished from his kingdom never to be seen again, cursing the two in his heart."

"How tragic." Iroh nodded in a mild fashion, as if truly observing something he found complex and interesting. "What became of the two then?"

"I don't know. I fell asleep and never finished the play. But still... good story huh? I mean, you can really related to it. Some people even find that it hits_ home,_ right, Zuko? Though if I were casting this, I'd have you play the general, not the prince. I think you'd be a real... natural... at the role, don't you think?" Toph smiled as she elbowed the prince sharply in the ribs.

Zuko choked brashly on his tea, both from the sudden realization behind the farce of a tale and from being suddenly elbowed in the gut, a sight which caused the other men around them to stop their own conversation and stare at the flushed young man as he coughed and turned red simultaneously, Toph thumping his back with a huge, mocking grin.

"Sorry, " Zuko meekly apologized when he could breath again. He then turned to glared at Toph, golden eyes burning fiercely like the element he commanded. "You didn't..." His voice was sharp as a razor, but somehow Toph managed to cut right across it smoothly.

"I did what now, Zuko? I was just telling a story." She even had the gall to flutter her eyelashes blindly at him while completely ignoring his veiled threat.

Zuko flashed his uncle a cautious look, then prepared to light into Toph with a vicious comeback, however his angry response was cut short by the exuberant arrival of Sokka. "Hey guys! I'm here!" he announced grandly. "You can finally start the meeting."

Iroh laughed uproariously at the entrance, obviously thinking Sokka was joking, but Toph just snorted, already used to dealing with the idiot. "Sorry to disappoint you there, Sokka," the blind girl pointed out sarcastically, "but we're still a few head figures short."

"What!?" Sokka protested. "Ah man! I wanted to be the last. You know, arrive in style, like the hero - just in the nick of time."

"Hero?" Toph chuckled. "You? Yeah right."

"Hey, with Aang gone-"

"Shut it, you," Toph growled, silencing him, then reached up to grab his sleeve and tug down hard, causing Sokka to crash to the ground beside them. "Sit," she ordered, steadfastly ignoring Zuko. He continued glaring at her, not sure if effects of his intensely affronted gaze were getting through her blindness or not, but determined to make sure she felt his anger anyway. "Why don't you relax?" the girl suggested merrily to Sokka. "Have a cup of tea; we'll start as soon as we can."

"I thought you were sparring with Suki," Zuko interrupted, hoping to changed the subject before Toph got a chance. "Didn't she come with you?"

"No," Sokka pouted. "She's still washing. She wouldn't let me wait with her."

"Really," Toph stated dryly.

"YES!" Sokka shouted, waving his hand. "Apparently she said the other warriors were squeamish about washing near a boy! Can you imagine..."

"You tried to sneak in on the Kyoshi's Warrior's bath?" Iroh asked curiously.

"Not sneak. I just went in there," Sokka explained. "And then they all hit me with their practice sticks!"

Iroh roared in laughter. "Well, you must admit, some of the most attractive women in this world are also the most formidable. Is that not right, my nephew?"

"Don't ask me," Zuko grumbled, staying out of it.

Toph snorted into her tea. "Man, I wish I could have seen you, Sokka. You actually thought you'd get away with that? There were five of them."

Sokka pouted. "I know! Even Suki hit me, and she's my _girlfriend_!"

"Not for long, if you keep that up," Toph added with a sicker.

"Hey, at least I _have _a girlfriend," he spat back, at Toph, who just stuck her finger up her nose and flicked a bugger at him absentmindedly.

"You managed to date a Kyoshi Warrior?" Iroh asked. "My boy, I am impressed."

"Thank you," Sokka said snootily. "Now... what were we talking about _before_ everyone started mocking me?"

"Oh nothing much," Toph waved nonchalantly, her voice rife with smugness at Zuko's expense. _This little midget is going to be the death of me, _his thoughts blazed. "We were just talking about a play, that's all. Did you know Iroh here is a big fan of the theater?"

"The theater?" Sokka jumped into the conversation. "You mean like the _The Boy in the Iceberg_? I love that one! That was hilarious! Except for the whole... you know morbid ending I really thought it was good." Sokka enthusiastically responded.

"Good?" Zuko interjected. "I thought you said that play was really bad!"

"Well, I mean, as far as _accuracy _yeah, and, you know, maybe the concepts of 'happy endings'," Sokka allowed, "but... you have the admit the effects were really awesome! Come on, they were all, shazap, bang - fwooop! And they'd, like, throw the streamer thingies that looked all, you know, elementally-"

Toph flung out a hand, hitting Sokka squarely in the chest and making him come to an abrupt, coughing halt. "Stop," she commanded condescendingly. "You sound much smarter when you don't talk." Sokka wheezed and rubbed his chest angrily, but Toph ignored both him and Zuko. "Besides, we were here to ask General _Iroh's _opinion on the plays, not yours."

Iroh chucked at Sokka's attempts to regain his voice and smiled fondly on the young man. "Well _The Boy in the Iceberg_ is a fascinating story, my boy." He started. "It really is. But the play we were actually discussing was-"

"Boring!" Zuko interjected as fast as he could. "What my dear old uncle is trying to say is that it's very boring, Sokka. Its nothing like what we saw at the island. You know its tragedy, forbidden romance, betrayal, all that stuff women love. Yeah, girl stuff! I'm pretty sure someone as manly you isn't interested in it. I know I'm not." The raven haired youth prayed to high heaven that his guile would win out against Sokka's ego.

"Well you do have a point there Zuko," Sokka scratched his chin as if he was about to agree. "I'm definitely not into all that romance stuff. I mean, Yue's and my scenes were cute, but the rest of the romance in _The Boy in the Iceberg _was so bad...I mean it had you and Katara paired up!" The boy cracked up loudly and Uncle snorted into his tea.

"Did it really now?" Uncle asked mildly.

"Yeah, it was so inaccurate!" Sokka guffawed loudly. "Man, that part had me laughing for days..."

"See?" Toph pointed out. "It's funny. Now, hear this one I was telling Iroh about, and see if you like it-"

Seeing his last chance to divert Toph, Zuko gave one final attempt. "Hey Sokka, did you have any plans for the war-"

"It has a beautiful princess," Toph offered, her voice dripping sweetness.

"A princess? Hmmm... I do have a thing for beautiful princesses..."

"-meeting," Zuko finished lamely.

Too late. What was once a guaranteed victory was stolen from him courtesy of a twelve year old girl who could not mind her own business. Someday for sure he would find a way to get even with her but for now Toph was damn making sure to make his life as miserable as possible.

"All right!" Toph cheered happily. "Let's have Sokka's opinion on the matter. Okay in the play there's this prince alright? and then..."

Zuko tuned out the rest of Toph's conversation as it was almost always pointless to try and stop her once she had made up her mind. Quietly Zuko moaned into his cup as he rolled his eyes with frustration waiting for them to finish.

"...And that's how it goes." Toph concluded by sipping the last of her tea.

"Man... that general guy's a jerk," Sokka shook his head in disbelief as he stirred his own. " I mean I could totally feel for the prince's pain. She was his love first, not his. Right, like men should stick together, especially two good friends like that!"

"Don't you think the general had thought of that?" Zuko surprised himself at the somewhat small growl found in his voice.

"Yeah, but, that's total betrayal, Zuko!" Sokka protested. "The prince had the right to be mad. That was his best friend. And mentor too!"

"Well _maybe_ the general had put that into _consideration _as well, Sokka. You can't always help who you love."

"Okay, I know you're new at the whole 'having friends' thing," Sokka explained as if to a small child, "so I'm going to lay this out real simple for you. Stealing a hot chick away from a jerk, awesome. Stealing her from your best friend, huge jackass move. I mean, that's just about as horrible as you can treat a friend!"

"But if he was a real friend, wouldn't he want the general and the princess to be happy, if they both really loved each other?" Zuko insisted.

"I don't know, Zuko," Sokka shrugged. "Either way, though, the guy was a woman stealer. I don't think you can trust a woman stealer. Besides, what are you getting all worked up for? It's not like you're the general." Sokka snickered at the remark.

"You're right. I'm not." Zuko never knew that lying through the skin of his teeth was this hard.

Uncle had folded up his hands beneath his chin and was watching Zuko with obvious disapproval tinged with mild interest.

"They are so late," Sokka oblivious to the atmosphere began to look around. "Master said he was coming straight from the forge. Where's Gramp-gramp?"

"With the princess." Iroh answered plainly, making Zuko pale. _Tell me he didn't pick up on it! Come on, Uncle... _But then the old man coughed and corrected himself. "I mean I do believe Master Pakku is with your sister Sokka and they should be here shortly."

Zuko felt like the floor had gone out from beneath him, a frightened feeling the superseded even his anger at Toph._ He knows...yep... he definitely knows..._ If Zuko could have banged his head against the table he would have, but lady fate seemed a bit more merciful today as he was spared the crude injustice of it all by the arrival of the Earth King Bumi, waterbending master Pakku, and finally Katara and Suki.

"Sorry," Katara apologized taking the empty seat right next to Zuko, as if it was the natural thing to do. "I was so caught up in training I almost forgot about the meeting."

"I had to find her and remind her about it," Suki smirked as she took the one right next to her boyfriend, who was as eager as always to have his girlfriend by his side."

"And so the beautiful princess arrives." Toph smiled devilishly.

"Hmm? What's she talking about?" Katara asked Zuko with a curious look upon her face.

He rubbed his temples wearily. "Nothing, Katara. Nothing at all. But I think I just found a play that I actually hate more than _The Boy and the Iceberg_..." Zuko shot Toph another angry look and added through his clench teeth, "This isn't over."

A loud disgruntled cough caught the whole groups attention as all their eyes focused upon the central figures in front of them. Zuko did not even notice his uncle had left his seat and was now standing in front of his cohorts, an Earth King and a master waterbender. "Ladies and gentlemen. I am glad to have you all here before me. I hope you will excuse my abrupt end to each of your, I am sure, entertaining conversations, but we have business to get down to now." With that he switched from the familiar, warm friendly tones of Zuko's jovial Uncle to a serious, stern manner of speaking. Zuko know he was hearing voice of General Iroh, the Dragon of the West. And it commanded everyone's attention. "We have many things at hand and much to discuss. Let this meeting commence."

The war council was assembled. Senior White Lotus members, former princes, warriors, benders, and people of all sorts had congregated. It was now time to plan the next step.

To win an impossible war.


	50. Chapter 50:Destiny

Author's note:

_artsyelric: i'm glad most of you liked pathik. trombs and i felt like the turtle was kind of... odd and godlike in the show. we thought that in order for aang to reconnect to his past lives, and to prepare himself to have his chakra unblocked, the person he needed to talk to before his final battle was, of course, his mentor. as guru pathik has often shown an affiliation with extinct or mythical creatures, we thought this as good a place as any for him to make his reappearance. also, he can help aang with katara, which sets him up to unblock his chakra and get in the avatar state in his battle against sozin (while in cannon he just magically gets it fixed by crashing into a rock - say what?)_

**Trombe: Ok readers this is two chapters in the span of a week. Hopefully this can satisfy most of you till the next one. Oh and considering the Fire Nation capital was never named (For reasons I don't know why, way to go bryke) we decided to come out with a name of out own. Loosely translated in mandarin as the city of dawn or morning Li Ming Dhu Shi is now the name of the Fire Nation Capital. Hope you guys agree with our choice here. If not...well its my story so meh.**

* * *

**What I Don't Like About You**

**Chapter 50: Destiny**

* * *

"My friends and allies," Iroh addressed the gathered warriors around him. "We have only two days left until Sozin's Comet arrives. At this time the day after tomorrow, a great fireball will light up the sky, and Ozai and his forces will receive the blessings of the sun unlike the world has ever seen before." He paused to let his next sentence sink in with the gathered warriors. "As will those firebenders who stand with us, with the White Lotus! We have known of the Fire Lord's intention to attack the Earth Kingdom on this day for some time now..." Katara noticed people around her nodding strictly along with Iroh. "What many of you do not know is that last night the Avatar's teachers arrived here in our camp."

"Then we'll be starting the march at dawn?" a hopeful earthbender in Ba Sing Se robes asked.

"Yes," Iroh confirmed. "But they also have other news for us, something we did not expect. Zuko, my nephew, please share with everyone what you know."

Zuko glanced sideways at Katara, and rubbed his arm nervously before standing. "Um... Hello." He shrugged halfheartedly, then straightened a bit. "I guess you'll all know by now that I have been traveling with the Avatar for the past month, serving as his firebending teacher. Well, shortly after hearing of my father's intention to burn the Earth Kingdom, Aang... disappeared."

Startled muttering broke out around the onlookers. Jeong Jeong shook his head sadly, and one waterbender even looked near to tears. Zuko lifted a hand, requesting their attention again, but before everyone grew quiet, another voice rose above the crowd. "What do you mean disappeared?" a stocky female earthbender demanded. "Was he kidnapped?"

Zuko's jaw tightened. "No."

"He's dead then?" the teary-eyed waterbender suggested.

Zuko's jaw set firmly. "I don't think so."

"You don't _think _so?" the first woman gasped, causing more talking to break out again.

Zuko frowned, but Bumi stepped forward, his voice cutting over all of them. "Everyone!" the mad old king interrupted, sounding far less mad than usual. "Perhaps you should hear the circumstances concerning this matter before reaching unfounded conclusions." The grumbling died out, and Bumi glanced towards Zuko.

The prince, however, shook his head. "Actually, I think the circumstances part would be best told to you by Sokka." Sokka stiffened, blinked stupidly, then coughed and stood, obviously both surprised and pleased to be called on. He opened his mouth wide to start speaking, but Zuko placed a hand on his shoulder. "Keep it brief, my friend." Sokka wilted slightly, but nodded.

"Right, so..." He swallowed once, then launched straight into the explanation. "Basically, all of us were hiding out on an island in the Fire Nation, training. Called Ember Island," Sokka reported dutifully, if not quite chronologically. He recalled his place, using his hands to help demonstrate, almost effectively. "One evening, a few nights ago, Aang went to sleep on the balcony. The next day, when we woke up, he was missing, along with his pet lemur, but not Appa - the bison - or his glider. There was no sign of a struggle, and none of us heard any noise either. There was no note, nothing to show how or why he left. The only clue," here Sokka dropped his voice melodramatically, "were the foot prints he left, leading from the balcony... straight into the ocean." A few people frowned curiously. Sokka dropped the fake voice. "There they just fade into the water, and that's it. Nothing else." He shrugged as an ending.

"So, he ran away?" a gruff looking Fire Nation man concluded.

"That is a possibility." Sokka nodded, as Toph's face went scarlet in anger. "However, I don't think it's likely. If Aang did leave - and he has run away before on a very few occasions - he has never left either Appa or his glider, both of which are still in our possession, along with all his changes of clothes, and his Fire Nation disguise. If he did run away, he wouldn't get very far with that giant blue arrow and Air Nomad garb. But there was no sign of him anywhere on the island, and no island near enough to swim to, even for Aang."

"He couldn't have been gone longer a few hours if you discovered his absence first thing in the morning," Bumi pointed out. "How far could he have gotten? Couldn't you catch him on Appa?" He squinted at the beast as if he found it hard to see the giant bison.

"We looked," Sokka insisted. "He's completely gone."

The unhappy mutters started again, but this time tinged with fear. "You said he's run away before?" a young earthbender asked dubiously. "How can that be? He's the Avatar, right?"

"This is just like last time," an old man snarled. "Just when the world needed him most, the Avatar vanished for a hundred years. Who knows how long he'll be gone for this time? The coward."

"Stop it!" Toph shouted, standing suddenly. "Stop it all of you! Aang didn't run away, okay? So stop acting like he did."

"Tell that to my grandchildren, a hundred years from now," the old earthbender muttered quietly, but not too quiet for Toph's great hearing.

"You," she barked, finger rising to his side to point straight at his chest, blind eyes staring the wrong way completely. "You... you just shut up, or I'll pound some sense into you myself!"

"And will that bring the Avatar back, little girl?" the Fire Nation soldier asked.

Toph snarled and stepped towards him angrily, but Zuko reached out and caught her shoulder, holding her back. Effectively stopped her her tracks she shifted immediately to a new approach. Instead of charging the man, she just drew herself up, somehow making her minimal height seem greater than it was, and glared down at his knees from beneath her bangs. The look was impressive, and would have been more so had she been able to accurately meet his eyes. "I chose to believe in Aang," she said simply. "I won't stand by while a bunch of scared little people insult him! He is my student. He will come."

Every was silent for a moment after the noble declaration. Bumi snickered slightly, though it didn't sound mocking, but most eyes stayed on Toph. "And if he doesn't?" the weeping bender whispered into the quiet.

Toph blinked, but found herself unable to respond angrily the frightened question. Zuko squeezed her shoulder and glanced sideways at Katara. She shook her head and looked down at her knees, but he cleared his throat slightly. "A little help here?" he requested under his breath.

Katara sighed, then inhaled deeply, and stood. She touched Toph's arm too and the girl relaxed slightly, stepping back behind Zuko with a forced, but confident smirk on her face. Katara hesitated though. She knew what they wanted. The passionate 'I believe in Aang' speeches she was always able to whip up. But now... She was confused. She didn't know where Aang was either, or why he had disappeared. The guilt she felt over his absence was always alive within her, now more than ever. And she was scared, as scared of any of these people. She had put all her faith in Aang, in the knowledge that he could and w_ould _beat the Fire Lord, but without him... Without Aang...

Sokka waved impatiently at her, and the weight of all the eyes in the clearing pressed in on her. To her left Iroh tilted his head curiously, and Katara wet her lips, but the words didn't come. Behind her, Zuko took a step as if to reach out and comfort her, or maybe draw her back, but stopped short, as if unable to continue. Katara felt somewhat broken. She couldn't do her job.

And then, suddenly, Suki was by her side. "I believe in Aang," she said simply. "Not just the Avatar, but in Aang. I think, when we get to the fight, he will be there; he will save us! But whether or not the Avatar is there," she added quietly, turning her head towards Katara, "I believe in myself, and my warriors, and my friends." She smiled. "Right, Katara?"

Her mouth unstuck. Air filled her lungs, and words filled her heart as her future sister's eyes held hers. She knew what she believed in. And she knew what to say. "That's right," she agreed, firmly, confidence and passion filling her voice instantly. "Suki is right. Yes, the Avatar is the person who is to keep balance between our lands, and yes, we need him. But as much as we need the Avatar, so we are needed as well.

"The Avatar is a person, a spirit, that exists among us humans, to help us, to protect us. But what happens to this world is not dictated or controlled by the Avatar. It has never been. What happens to our world, to each of us, is our own responsibilities. We hold the power to change our own destinies." Behind her Zuko stiffened proudly as he recognized his own lessons in her speech. "That is why you are all here, each and every one of you; to make this world into a place _you _believe in. You are here to fight for your own freedom, for your own beliefs. So don't stand there and complain, or pray for a miracle. Don't wait for the Avatar. Believe in him, yes, but also believe in yourselves. Believe in us.

"Today is the day it all begins - right here, right now. With the courage in each of our hearts. We are a force to be reckoned with. Maybe none of us have the power of all four elements that the Avatar possess, but there are men and women here from every land, every tribe across this earth, and gathered together, we are stronger than any one man - even Ozai! Today we are here not to quiver in fear, but to decide our own futures, and to fight for them.

"When this meeting goes down in history, how will we want to be remembered? As men and women who doubted? Or as people who stood up and seized their own futures? As heroes." Katara turned her full gaze upon the people, her shoulders drawing up proudly as she reached her conclusion, one it had taken her an rough adventure of her own to discover. "I, for one, will fight to my last breath. Not for the Avatar, not for revenge or hatred, but for myself. For Katara of the Southern Water Tribe. The Fire Nation fears the Avatar, but in forty-eight hours, I want them to look upon me and fear the waterbender, Katara, too!" Beside her, Suki swelled, her own visage growing both more beautiful, and more frightening as Katara's words swept through both her friends, and the onlookers.

"As I am sure they will," Iroh whispered when Katara stopped. He smiled at her fondly, and it filled her with pride. "I see the Avatar has chosen his teachers well. This girl is right! What is, is. It has already happen and we cannot change it. What we can do is adapt, and work with what we have. What we have is a fighting army, every bit as good as the Fire Nation's. These girls here believe in the Avatar, but I believe in each and every one of you. You were all handpicked by myself and by our friends here. We are a force unlike any others that have crossed this world, and I believe that today we will all find our destinies. So I ask you, my friends, are you still with me?"

There was a half second of silence, broken abruptly by Bumi's snort of laughter, and then a stride forward from Jeong Jeong. "To the end," he declared.

"To the end!" Zuko agreed in a bellow, stepping forwards as well, his hand pulling Toph with him.

Katara was shocked to find his words, though brief, seemed far more moving than her own. Before she even thought, she felt her own feet moving forward, the desire to follow this man firmly planted in her mind. Suki and Sokka stepped next, and barely a half step behind a group of earthbenders rose and stepped forward too, together, like a great moving wall. Within moments every man had stood and done the same. The grumpy old man spat to the side and grinned around a few teeth. "Come on, General Iroh, did you think we would back out now?"

The old general smiled at the wizened man and clasped his hand. "I just said I believed in you, did I not?"

"Bah," the man spat again. "Idealistic old fool."

Iroh laughed and Jeong Jeong stepped forward and waved everyone to take their seats again. "It is time we nailed out our final plans," he announced, gesturing for the White Lotus Leaders and the Avatar party to sit together.

"Good job," Zuko whispered in Katara's ear as she sat down. "I knew you still had it in you."

She smiled and bumped him playfully. "You're really so happy to restore my faith in Aang?"

Zuko frowned, but got over it quickly enough. "I believe in him too," the prince stated simply. "And I'm happy when your happy. Plus," he added, his eyes glinting golden, "I like it when you talk like that. It makes men's blood boil."

Katara shivered and opened her mouth to answer, but Jeong Jeong beat her to it. "First, one more update, and this one a fair bit happier than the absence of our young Avatar." His mouth twisted strangely around the word 'happy' but he pushed forward anyway. "I would like to note that our mission at the Boiling Rock was a success. Thanks to our connections there, and the brave work of the men and women we sent, the prison has been destroyed, and all worthy prisoners released. A very large number were indeed warriors, and more were willing to take up weapons and join us upon their release. The seeds of revolution had already been laid for us. Apparently, a lot of the Fire Nation prisoners even wanted to join our side." Here he glanced sideways at the Avatar's group. "It seems they have made a flag of their own. They now claim to be in revolt, demanding that Prince Zuko be restored as the rightful heir to their throne. You have quite the following amongst the 'criminals', my boy."

Zuko flushed brightly, and nodded down towards his lap. Katara couldn't help it. Her hand reached out behind them and rested in the small of his back, squeezing him tightly for a moment, and he flushed brighter still.

Jeong Jeong frowned as if remembering something he didn't like before continuing. "I am afraid to announce that the flag was actually made by one of the men we sent to help break into the prison and free everyone, an old follower of mine, Chey. However a great many have taken to his way of thinking - including the princess' old teammates."

"Mai and Ty Lee?" Zuko asked, his voice a whisper. "They're safe?"

"According to the messenger hawk I received this morning," Jeong Jeong nodded, "yes. And ready to fight again; this time for us."

There was a small cheer from various benders in their circle, most of whom Katara figured had at one point or another had their bending blocked by Ty Lee's nimble fingers and were glad not to have to face that on the day of Sozin's Comet. Beside her Zuko sighed heavily, and Katara felt a huge amount of stress pour out of his body like steam from a kettle. His back slumped beneath her hand, then his shoulders squared and he smiled sternly. "A good thing," he said firmly, and his uncle caught his eye and nodded.

"A very good thing indeed," the man agreed. "Will the Blue Wolf and his men be able to join us in Ba Sing Se?"

Jeong Jeong shook his head as Katara's breath caught in her throat. "Unfortunately, no. They are at least a three day journey from Ba Sing Se, even if they don't stop to rest, so they will be no good there. However, they are sailing west and waiting for my return hawk with orders."

"Very good," Iroh nodded.

"Wait!" Sokka cut in rudely. "The Blue Wolf?"

"Ah yes," Iroh remembered, rubbing his jaw. "Your father, right?" Both Sokka and Katara nodded enthusiastically. "He led the force that has been breaking into prisons and gathering forces. I believe he has rescued most of those we lost during the raid on the Day of Black Sun."

"Way to go, Dad," Sokka whispered, and Katara nodded, finding her brother's hand silently.

"Hold on," Zuko interrupted again, lifting a hand. "You're going to Ba Sing Se?" His uncle nodded. "But what about the Fire Lord? What about Li Ming Dhu Shi?"

"That is not where we are needed, my nephew," Uncle stated calmly. "Our destiny lies in Ba Sing Se. I can feel it in my bones."

"No," Zuko protested. "We have to go to Li Ming Dhu Shi - we have to stop my father!"

"If you feel so strongly that that is where you should be," Iroh pointed out, "then perhaps, Zuko, that is _your _destiny."

Zuko's brow drew unhappily. "Uncle, you're the only person other than the Avatar who can possibly defeat the Father Lord."

"You mean, the Fire Lord," Toph corrected with a snicker.

"That's what I just said," Zuko agreed, confused. Sokka chortled, but Katara rubbed Zuko's back again. He was really out of sorts to make a mistake like that. She knew Zuko had been putting all his faith in finding his uncle. The last thing he wanted was to be handed back the responsibility. "We need you to come with us," Zuko insisted, and Katara, who now knew him well enough to pick up on his subtle moods, herd the desperation in his voice.

His uncle must have heard it too, because he shook his head again, his voice heavy. "No, Zuko. It won't turn out well."

"But... isn't that why everyone here is following you?" Zuko asked, waving to the crowd. "You should be the Fire Lord, not my father! The throne... It always should have been yours. You'll defeat him, won't you? You'll take the Fire Nation back..."

"Zuko, I am old-"

"No!" Zuko insisted stubbornly. "You can beat him, and we'll be there to help."

"Even if I did defeat Ozai, and I don't know that I could, it would be the wrong way to end the war," Iroh explained with a heavy heart. "History would see it as just more senseless violence - a brother killing a brother to grab power. The only way for this war to end peacefully is for the Avatar to defeat the Fire Lord."

"I know we just said to believe in him, and I do!" Zuko grumbled. "But... what if he doesn't come. Will you fight Father then?" Iroh shook his head. "Then what will we do?"

"If the Avatar does not come to face Ozai in two days, then it is not your father's day to die," Iroh answered simply. "But whether he lives or dies, it will be our day to take back our lands from the Fire Nation, and that, my nephew, is why we are going to Ba Sing Se!" There was a cheer from any man close enough to hear that, and Iroh thrust his fist in the air to acknowledge them. His eyes softened again as they turned back to Zuko. "Someday, be it today, tomorrow, or years from now, the Avatar will fulfill his destiny, and the Fire Nation will have a true leader again. I believe that."

"And then..." Zuko stopped for a steadying breath. "Then would you come and take your rightful place on the throne?"

Iroh paused as if considering. Then, "No." Now there were surprised gasps from a few in the crowd. "I am an old man, stuck in my ways. That is not what the Fire Nation needs now. I have had my fill of power, of all of it. It is time for change in the homeland."

"Change?" Zuko echoed.

"Yes, change," Iroh agreed. "Someone new must take the throne. An idealist with a pure heart and unquestionable honor. A man the Fire Nation is already willing to follow. Only a man who understands what it truly means to change himself can change a nation."

A stunned silence fell over most of the crowd. The older, wiser eyes turned calculatingly towards the two fallen princes, and Katara felt as if everything slowed down for a moment, before Iroh spoke again.

"It has to be you, Prince Zuko."

Zuko inhaled sharply through his teeth. "Me?" He sounded horrified.

Iroh smiled proudly. "You."

"But... who would follow me?" Zuko whispered. "I've made so many mistakes..."

"It seems you already have quite the following among the revolutionist we freed from prisons," Jeong Jeong noted. "It is not Iroh's symbol they wave on their flags."

"And you have to admit, boy, your honor is unquestionable," Bumi chuckled.

"Unquestionable? My honor?" Zuko shook his head as if he wasn't hearing them right. "You are mad."

"Oh, assuredly." The king snorted. "But also right."

"My honor is worthless," Zuko snarled. "It is so far gone that even I know I've no chance of ever regaining it again."

"And that," Bumi grinned, "is why you have earned it."

Zuko frowned. "I haven't. I have done nothing worthy of honor in my life."

"Yes, you have," Iroh answered firmly. "You've struggled and suffered, but you have always followed your own path. You restored your own honor, and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation."

Zuko gaped at him.

"You have," Katara agreed, then blinked when she realized everyone was looking at her now, and felt her face flush slightly. "I..." She bit her lip. "I don't know much about honor," she said truthfully. "But it was only by being around you, Zuko, that I came to understand what it meant. You are honorable, if any man alive is."

"How can that be?" Zuko seemed less able to fight with Katara than he had with his uncle, and his face transformed to something almost hopeful as he stared at her. "I have messed up so many times..."

Katara nodded. "But because you are honorable, you do your best to fix those mistakes." She smiled lovingly. "_That_ is why I forgave you."

Zuko's throat bobbed as he swallowed. Then he nodded solemnly. Sokka reached over to slap his back, and Toph elbowed him in the ribs until he coughed. "You can do it, Princy. Taking back the Fire Nation... how hard can that be?" she grinned as he wheezed, and Suki even reached over to ruffle his hair.

"So I take it you accept?" Iroh asked sarcastically.

Zuko pushed Toph off him and nodded firmly. "I'll try, Uncle."

"Good," the old man nodded. "That's settled."

"You're really dead set on the Ba Sing Se battle plan?" Sokka asked.

"Yes," Iroh stated firmly, and Sokka frowned.

"But what if the Fire Lord burns all of the rest of the Earth Kingdoms while you rescue that one city?"

"I don't know," Iroh admitted. "I only know what my part in this war it to be. Sozin's Comet is arriving, and our destinies are upon us. Aang will face the Fire Lord. As I said, it is not my fight. When I was a boy, I had a vision that I would one day take Ba Sing Se. Only now do I see that my destiny is to take it back from the Fire Nation so the Earth Kingdom can be free again."

"That's why you gathered the members of the White Lotus," Suki said with realization. "To help you realize your own destiny."

"Exactly," Iroh agreed. "So, we in the White Lotus have our battle plans made all ready. I take it you and your friends won't be coming with us to Ba Sing Se?"

Sokka looked at Katara, and she could see the resolution in is eyes. "No," Katara answered for him. "We're needed in the Fire Nation Capital, to stop Ozai. I believe that is our destiny."

"Ozai isn't in the capital," Pian Dao pointed out. "Once he declared himself Phoenix King and announced his plan to burn the Earth Kingdoms to a crisp on the day of Sozin's Comet, he left for the Smoky Islands, hidden in the mist off the western shore of the Earth Kingdom."

"Why would he go there?" Sokka asked quizzically.

"It is where he plans to launch his war balloons from," the swordsman answered, and Zuko frowned.

"That's not too far from here," the prince noted. "We could make it there to stop him."

"No," Iroh stopped him. "Zuko, you must return to the Fire Nation, so that when the Fire Lord falls, you can assume the throne and restore peace and order. If you have any chance of assuming the throne after this, you must not let your sister be crowned Fire Lord. She plans to take the throne during the comet, something that we cannot afford to let happen."

"So... you want me to go to the capital after all?" Zuko repeated.

"Didn't you say earlier that it was where you felt you must go?" Zuko's frown deepened, but he was forced to agree. "Then that is your destiny. To retake your throne at Li Ming Du Shi, not to face your father."

Zuko's jaw tightened. "I understand. I never wanted to fight him anyway."

"But your path at Li Ming Du Shi will not be easy either," Iroh pointed out. "Your father is not the only family we have against us in this war. Azula will be there, waiting for you."

Zuko smiled with grim confidence. "I can handle Azula."

"Not alone," Iroh denied, and Zuko's face fell slightly. "You'll need help."

The scared face hesitated a moment, as if torn by the lack of confidence on his uncle's part, but then he nodded. "What do you suggest?"

Iroh smiled. "You are learning, my nephew. Even you cannot take on a whole city alone. If you are to face Azula, you will need a back up who believes in _you, _and who knows the Fire Nation. Jeong Jeong?"

"Yes?" the man asked, stepping up beside his leader.

"Send a message to the Blue Wolf and his men. Tell them that when the comet appears, Zuko will take back his kingdom. Ask them to sail to Li Ming Du Shi, and lay siege to it, once more. I have a feeling that, this time, they will succeed."

Jeong Jeong cracked a thin smile. "With pleasure," he agreed, drawing a quill eagerly from the ink jar beside him.

"I think your father would be more than happy for a second crack at the capital, wouldn't you?" Iroh asked Sokka mildly, and the boy grinned enthusiastically. "Perhaps it will be a chance for both he and I to correct our past errors." He rubbed his hands together in anticipation as he watched the plans coming together. "Excellent. Zuko, you will rendezvous with them the morning before the comet appears. Azula will be in the Palace courtyard, the natural place for her to be crowned. You must make your way inside before the coronation takes place."

Zuko's jaw set. "With Hakoda backing me, and all the Fire Nation soldiers so dispersed accorss the nation, I'm sure that won't be a problem."

"You must choose some one to accompany you," his uncle reminded him. "Azula is a powerful bender, devoid of emotion; a cool killer. If you want to stop her, you will need someone with you who knows what it is like to face her."

"You're right," Zuko agreed firmly. "Katara. How would like to help me put Azula in her place?"

"It would be my pleasure," Katara grinned wickedly. "I've been wanting a crack at her for a long while."

Uncle raised an eyebrow at his nephew, but shrugged. "Actually, I was going to suggest Mai or Ty Lee, but having a waterbender seems like an even better idea." He nodded his approval. "Jeong Jeong, will you inform her father she will be there too?"

Jeong Jeong nodded and penned it into the letter.

Sokka frowned. "What about us? What's our destiny today?"

"What do you think it is?" Iroh asked him.

"I think..." Sokka stopped. "Even though I want to go join my father, and... and even though we don't know where Aang is, we need to do everything we can to stop the air ships."

"That's right," Suki agreed. "Fighting at Ba Sing Se for freedom and stopping Azula's coronation are all well and good, but we have to focus on the big problem here. Ozai could burn half the Earth Kingdoms in the time the comet is visible. We can't let him do that."

Iroh frowned. "It is not that I doubt your surely proficient skills," he told the two warriors, "but I doubt there is anyone but the Avatar who would be capable of stopping my brother."

"Well... what if Aang doesn't come back?" Toph pointed out.

Iroh paused and glanced at Bumi, who shrugged uncaring. "The kid's got a point," he said simply.

"Besides," Sokka decided, "we don't have to stop Ozai. We just have to take down his ships."

Jeong Jeong cleared his throat. "There are over twenty air ships stored on those islands. If Ozai deploys even half of them, how do you expect to stop him?"

Sokka cracked his neck and stretched his fingers as if warming up for some light exercise. "Well, I helped invent those damned ships. It seems the least I can do is find a way to take them down."

"I'll come with you," Suki agreed. "As will my warriors. We may be from Kyoshi Island, but the Earth Kingdoms were once our homelands. We will help you protect them"

"And me," Toph agreed.

After a moment, Bumi cackled. "What will you do?" he asked, though not too unkindly. "Those ships are made from metal, and they are high above the ground, too high to hit with rocks, even if you could see them. Trust me, I've tried."

Toph smiled hugely. "No worries. I can bend metal."

Many jaws dropped, leaving the revered masters in their group gaping at their youngest member, and Bumi laughed uproariously. "You are full of surprises, Miss Bei Fong," he complimented, and Toph beamed.

"You are sure you want to take on this task?" Iroh asked Sokka firmly when they had recovered from Toph's revelation.

Sokka nodded surely. "It has to be done."

"Ozai will most likely be there, and you will be without backup," Iroh reminded him.

Toph spat outside their circle. "Ozai doesn't scare me. All the better if he's there; that means, when Aang does face the Fire Lord, we'll be right there if he needs us."

Iroh smiled. "Your faith is admirable." Toph leered at him. "Very well. Then I will assign you a group of my men to help you, and to make sure that you arrive safely. You will need transportation. It is far, but if you move fast enough, you can make it, even without your flying bison. Besides the Kyoshi Warriors, I will assign you a team of Northern Water Tribe Warriors. A team of seven, with two benders. They are all I feel we can safely spare..."

Sokka smiled widely. "That'll be perfect."

"You all will have to leave immediately," Iroh announced."You have much more ground to cover than we do, but if you don't delay, you can make it to both the capitol and the Smoky Islands."

"We're ready any time," Katara said firmly, sharing a look with Sokka that made her brother nod determinedly.

"Well then," Iroh concluded, "I think this meeting is over. Is there anything else we need to address? Anyone?" No one spoke. "Then best of luck to everyone! Drink your fill tonight, and be merry, for in the morning we all march... to our destinies!"

The officers of the White Lotus all leaped to their feet in a great cheer to fate, and somewhere, in the chaos, Zuko's hand found Katara's, and she didn't let go.

* * *

Quietly he listened. Gently, he focused. Slowly he reached out. He could feel it. He knew it was there.

But nothing.

"Grr… This is a little bit harder than I thought it was going to be," Aang announced with frustration as he sagged in his meditative posture.

"Give it time young one; you could feel it that time, couldn't you? Is it not within your grasp?" Pathik encouraged the lad sitting right across from him.

"Yeah, but this time the voices are fainter than before; it's like there's a wall that's dividing us. I used to be able to contact Roku with no problem at all but right now it's like I can't even get through." Frustrated by his predicament the Avatar slapped his cheeks as if to encourage himself to try harder.

"Perhaps I can be of assistance, Aang," Pathik suggested. "The flow of the spirits inside you is blocked in many different ways. You are tangled up like a knot, and your mind is a constant whirl, even in mediation. But this is a spiritual place, somewhere even I possess insight to the realms normally hidden from mortal eyes. In desperate times such as this it is the least I could do to help guide you through your spiritual journey once more."

"How?"

"Close your eyes, Avatar, Feel the air around you. Hear the parting of the ocean's water as it breaks upon the sand. Notice the shifting of the grass and its connection to the earth. Now… listen. Listen to feint beating of your heart, listen to its fire burn, the cackling of life's flame."

"I… I'm listening… and…"

The world as Aang perceived it paused for a moment as the familiar glow of his tattoos and the feint light of his eyes signified the opening of the spiritual realm.

A ghostly image emerged from him, shot forward, and went to enveloped the older man who sat in front of him.

Slowly it began to take shape and while Guru Pathik lay still Aang could feel the old man's presence, along with another. The phantom silhouette had finished its transformation. Avatar Roku had finally appeared.

"Hello, Aang. While I would like to say it is good to see you once again, I wish deep inside it was not under such circumstances." Roku spoke with the majesty of his own voice and yet Guru Pathik echoed the previous Avatar's words, giving it a ghastly and somber tone. "Although I must admit it is interesting to speak with you here, in your world, rather than in the land of the spirits."

"Avatar Roku… I'm so confused. I have so many questions to ask."

Roku nodded sagely. "I see you are lost in more ways than one right now. Your destiny is such a clouded journey. I wish I could answer all of your answers for you, young one, but this is not how it is suppose to be. Never the less I will try my best to answer some of your questions."

"I am lost," Aang agreed, his eyes reflected the confusion that whirled inside the young airbender. "I need to figure out what to do once I face the Fire Lord."

"I feel that this is just one of the many concerns that plague you my young Avatar."

"No kidding," Aang grumbled before dropping quiet again.

Roku smiled slightly. "But if you must know what I would do in your stead then I must hear what has transpired and how it has come to make you so confused about yourself. I may have been you in the past life Aang but I am no mind reader," Roku gently pointed out, hoping that his little joke would lighten the air surrounding the twelve year old's heart.

He did briefly cause the boy monk to smile before Aang put back on the face of one who carried a heavy burden. "Everyone expects me to just take the Fire Lord's life, but I just don't know if I could do that!" Aang confessed. "I mean I never thought it would to come to this."

The older Avatar listened well before imparting his own wisdom on the matter. "In my life Aang, I tried to be disciplined. And to show restraint, much like you. But it back fired when Fire Lord Sozin took advantage of my restraint and mercy. If had been more decisive and acted sooner I could have stopped Sozin and stopped the war before it started." Avatar Roku's voiced was laced with regret and melancholy, something that surprised the young airbender.

"But Roku, that wasn't your fault," Aang defended him. "You told me your story, remember? Sozin was your friend! He never should have done that! You never expected him to turn out like that!"

"But it did happen, Aang… And the world paid the price for my mistake." The phantom apparition shook his head in shame. But the remorse only lasted a split second; Avatar Roku was back to his own somber self, a face full of vigilance and fierce determination. "Besides, I didn't tell you my story to make you feel sympathy for Ozai. I told you it so that you might better understand the Fire Nation itself, to make you wiser."

"I know!" the boy interrupted angrily. "But... it's all so confusing now. I haven't had enough time - I don't know enough."

"Even time wouldn't help you," Roku said gently. "A hard decision is still a hard decision, at whatever age you make it. In all my years that I have lived upon this world, there is much that I have learned. To take a life without reason is murder. To take a life without justice is violence. I understand how it must pain you so Aang but never the less… While I cannot solve your problem for you, I can offer you this wisdom, young Avatar. Whatever your action, whatever your goal, whatever you need you must do… Do so and know… you must… be… decisive."

And with that last piece of advice Avatar Roku vanished into thin air, leaving a bewildered Guru and an even more frustrated Avatar.

"That felt sort of tingly," Pathik joked absentmindedly. "Well, are you satisfied with Avatar Roku's answer, Aang?

"No... That is, not just yet. I need more time," Aang pleaded with Guru. "I mean I know Roku's right and that this whole thing could have been avoided if he'd acted as he wants me to now, but there has to be another way! There has to!"

"I applaud you for your convictions, but Aang… is that how you really feel?" the Guru asked seriously.

"Yes. I have to do this."

"Then let us ask another."

"Another what?" Aang questioned.

"Another Avatar, of course," Pathik explained.

"But... I only have a spirit connection with Roku," Aang pointed out. "I don't know any of the others."

"Oh, I think you might be surprised, Aang." Pathik smiled. "Here, try it. On this island, with me to help you, I think you might be able to meet another."

"Alright…" Once more Aang fell into the meditative slumber, the lull of the spirit realm pulling him closer to its border. He knew who he needed to talk to next. "Avatar Kyoshi," he whispered. "I need your wisdom… I need your help."

The blue mist surrounded the bald monk and again coated the spiritual master in front of Aang, taking another form, this time a beautiful, stern woman, her face painted, her opaque attire once green as the earth itself, her eyes unflinching and determined.

"Greetings, Aang," Kyoshi started stoically. "This is not the first time you and I have met but this will be the first time you will remember taking to me." Kyoshi's voice was strong and unwavering, something that the younger monk felt was comforting, as if he were talking to an elder sister he never had.

"Avatar Kyoshi I don't know what to do. I-"

"I know your predicament, Aang. You need not explain yourself twice. You told me. Or specifically Roku told me." She smiled, as if recalling a fond memory, before her stony gaze returned. "Let me tell you a tale, young airbender. In my day… Chin the Conqueror threatened to throw the world out of balance. I stopped him. And the world entered a great era of peace."

"But you didn't really kill Chin. Technically he fell to his doom because he was too stubborn to get out of the way," Aang interjected, feeling like he needed to point this out.

If his words were suppose to create a reaction from strikingly tall woman in front of him it failed immensely as Avatar Kyoshi didn't so much as flinch. Instead she replied with straightforward honestly, "Personally I don't really see the difference. And we both know there are earth nation villages that don't see it either. But I assure you, I would have done whatever it took to stop Chin."

Something in her voice told Aang that Avatar Kyoshi was telling the truth, and that frightened him a bit.

Sensing his discomfort the spirit dissolved momentarily and reappeared closer in front of him, where a gentle celestial hand caressed his cheek. He found the touch to be both cold and warm, an odd sensation.

"Yours is a gentle soul, Aang. I can see that. There is much of the Air Nomads in you that I admired a long time ago." The older woman spoke with a voice that was soothing, as if she was at peace.

Aang's spirit was lifted momentarily before the comforting touch of the female Avatar left his face and was now where it sat before.

"However you cannot ignore what has happened to this world, young Avatar." She sighed once. "While I am normally against giving too much direction to Avatars, as I feel we must each carve our own destinies, it seems the world is no longer as simple as it used to be and I feel if I must guide you in such a path as this… Well then, so be it. Know this," she advised, her transparent eyes boring into his with green intensity even death could not dim. "If it is unjust to take a life, it is even more of an injustice to let an evil man live. I offer you this wisdom Aang: only justice will bring peace…"

And then Avatar Kyoshi was gone.

"…I never knew that Avatar Kyoshi could be like that…" Aang had hoped that the Earth Kingdom Avatar would have been more understanding. "She was so…"

"Blunt?" Pathik asked. "Oh… she was never one to go in circles whenever there was a straighter path, even if the straighter path was full of holes and rocks. Or so I am told." Guru Pathik nodded while he stroked his beard, as if satisfied with his own analysis.

"I knew I shouldn't have asked Kyoshi…" Aang lamented angrily.

"But you did Aang. And it was wise to do so. Avatar Kyoshi has given you an answer. While it is not the answer you would have liked to hear it is her answer none the less." Pathik sighed, knowing full well that look in the young monk's eyes. "But if it is more answers you seek then I shall continue to help you."

"I need to look deep inside myself. I need to know more."

Pathik nodded as if he expected it, then waited for Aang to contact the next reincarnation. Closing his eyes for the third time Aang began his search, deeper and darker into the recesses of his soul. He knew he was there, the third Avatar, before him. He could feel his presence.

_I know you're there..._

_No! I do not have time… I must find him! I need to find him! _

_Please… I need your help…_

_Cannot help… I cannot help anyone… I couldn't even help her... Ummi…_

_But you can help! _Aang insisted. _Please… I must know… I need some answers!_

The voice was faint. Aang could feel the presence of the spirit torn, as if part of it wanted to stay inside, while its other half wanted to communicate with him. Aang just needed that little push. A name. Once long ago he had remembered from the Air Nomads' teachings the power of names. He needed a name.

Desperately he searched within his own mind, traversing the roads of the endless lives he had lived. It did not take long before he had found what he was looking for.

"Avatar Kuruk! I need you! Come out!"

As if by Aang's will alone this time, the blue mist appeared again, ready to take a new form for the third time.

This time the spirit who inhabited Pathik was a man. A strong man by his muscular physique, his face hard, upon his head rested a great bear helm that magnified this man's ferocious presence. His blue garb of fur and leather signified his origins in the Water Tribe.

"I hear your voice and answered your plea, young Avatar," the bearded waterbender grumbled. Then he seemed to come to terms with the current events. His face set, and his eyes met Aang's. "I am Avatar Kuruk. You may have been the first to interrupt me upon my long and arduous torment of self-repentance. Make your case known or leave me be to continue my search for her…"

If Kiyoshi's voice was stern and strong Kuruk's held a different kind of strength, a desperate kind. Yet along with that strength came weariness and a hint of regret as if lamenting over a deed that had happened long ago. Somehow, although he had never hosted Kuruk as he had Kyoshi, he felt he already had a deeper knowledge of this man, as if they had met before, or perhaps as if Aang had heard his story somewhere…

"My apologies Avatar Kuruk but… who are you looking for?" Curiosity got the better of the young airbender as he found himself asking this question instead of his intended one.

Kuruk's face twisted momentarily into a mask of anger, and pain. "My beloved. My wife. My Ummi. She was taken from me. Taken to punish me for my negligence."

"Oh… Oh, I'm sorry… I'm sure it must be painful for you to have that happen…" Somehow Aang felt a very strong sense of pain within his heart too; his eyes began to water, as if he himself had suffered the heart ache, though whether or not it was because Kuruk was his past life or because he found himself relating to the tale at hand he did not know.

Kuruk's face cleared immediately, and he waved a hand as if dismissing Aang's concern. "Do not worry about pain, Avatar Aang. You have suffered enough just as I have suffered. Let it not cloud your heart any further. Now speak, so that I may return to my hunt of the face-stealer."

So Aang asked his question. He knew Kyoshi had already heard it, from when he asked Roku, but somehow he wasn't surprised that Kuruk hadn't listened earlier. He wasn't angry at having to repeat himself. After hearing Kuruk's story, and having met Koh, maybe even seen this Ummi's face at that time, Aang considered himself lucky Kuruk had even stopped to answer his question. _No wonder Kyoshi was so strict, _he decided. _Kuruk would hardly have been the kind of mentor for her that Roku has been for me…_

Feeling he understood all his past lives a little better, Aang began hoping that Kuruk would be the one to give him the answers that he sought. However, when he finished presenting his problems, Kuruk gave him another life lesson instead.

"A story for you if I may, Avatar Aang. When I was young I was always a 'go with the flow' kind of Avatar. People seemed to work out their own problems and there was peace and good times in the world. But then… I lost the woman I loved to Koh, the face-stealer. It was my fault…" The Water Tribe Avatar's face contorted in pain. "So used was I to a world of peace that I had forgotten my own duty to it, to be vigilant. If I had been more attentive and more active I could have saved her…"

Kuruk then turned his full attention to Aang, as if he was confessing a terrible secret. "I wish you could have been spared this fate, Aang. But sadly... I am you, and you are me. You could never escape the Avatar's duty. My wisdom to you is this; do not make the same mistake I did. Do not turn your eyes away just because you do not wish to see. Aang… you must actively shape your own destiny and the destiny of the world…"

With those last haunting words, Avatar Kuruk was no more, returning once more into the realm he came from.

"Such a morbid tale that one wove. I do not envy his sad fate," the Guru commented.

"Yeah, yeah I felt his sadness too, but..." As much as Aang felt he understood Kuruk's pain something somewhere in his heart told him that was not the answer he was looking for. "Look, all these past Avatars, they keep telling me I'm going to have to do it. They don't get it."

"I'm quite certain they understand you, Aang. It is just you do not understand them-"

"You're right, Momo!" The Guru's words fell upon deft ears as Aang sought solace in the company of his lemur familiar.

"Oh dear," the old man sighed.

"Maybe an Air Nomad Avatar will understand where I'm coming from!" Aang surmised as he looked at Momo with satisfaction.

"Aang perhaps you've forgotten already the message Avatar Kuruk had left for you. Do not turn your eyes away just because you do not wish to-"

"I know you can't really talk. Pretending you can just helps me think. Thanks, Momo," Aang continued on as if not even hearing the spiritual master in front of him.

"Aang..."

Finally the boy looked up. "You'll help me out won't you Guru Pathik?" He grinned his most devious, and most endearing, grin, shameless about his manipulation.

The bearded old man shook his head out of slight exhaustion and nodded, agreeing with the request.

And for the fourth and final time (the Guru had hoped) the two ascended once more into the spirit realm, hoping to call out to the fourth Avatar. As they tried with their search a gentle breeze began to gust around them, beckoning the surrounding trees to sway and dance to the music the wind created - a good sign that the Air Nomad Avatar had heard their call.

Slowly but surely the mist appeared, puffy and airy, it carefully took human form once more.

What appeared from the azure smoke was a woman with gentle features. Men would have called her beautiful when gazing upon her youthful face. The markings of an airbender decorated the top of her forehead, her hair partially shaved. Adorned with the medallions of the elder monks, she wore the yellow and orange of the Air Nomads proudly, despite the muted, transparency of the spirit world.

"Hello, I don't think we've met," Aang greeted her with excitement.

A warm, familiar feeling crept its way back into his heart. It had been so long since he had laid eyes upon another Air Nomad. "Greetings, Aang," she smiled back at him. "No, I do not think we've met, not officially anyway. I am Avatar Yangchen, young airbender. It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance formerly."

The elder Air Nomad bowed her head with such grace and dignity that Aang rushed to do the same. The previous three Avatars were so different he could not predict what she was like, but he was pretty sure it would at least pay to be polite. "As it is mine," Aang acknowledged formerly.

"What is it you seek, Aang?" Yangchen asked pleasantly. "It is not everyday that an Avatar conjures up a previous life from four cycles ago without some urgent matter to discuss."

"I summoned you, Avatar Yangchen, because... well, because I need help. I am so lost right now, and I don't think that what the other Avatars told me is right. Not for me anyway."

"This does bode troublesome indeed," the tattooed woman fretted. "But weren't you able to seek advice from Roku? I believe he is usually your guide-"

Aang shook his head stubbornly. "I thought, maybe, you would understand, um... better, since we're both... airbenders..."

Yangchen nodded in patient understanding. "Well then, what is it that ails you, young airbender?"

Before he would explain his case to the newest Avatar, Aang took a deep breath, hoping that this would be the last time he needed to relive his current predicament.

"Avatar Yangchen," he began formally. "The monks have always told me that all life is sacred. Even the life of the tiniest spider-fly caught in its own web-"

"Yes... All life is sacred." Aang perked up visibly at how fast Avatar Yangchen agreed with him.

"I know!" Aang was ecstatic, happy to know there was at least one Avatar who agreed with his own point of view. "I'm even a vegetarian!"

Avatar Yangchen smiled loving, chuckling a little in the process. "I know, Aang. I was too..."

"Oh, right... Air Nomad... hehehe..." Aang grinned sheepishly, feeling foolish for a moment. "Anyway I've always tried to solve my problems by being quick or clever and I've only have to use violence for necessary defense."

"That is admirable of you," Yangchen complimented.

"And I've certainly never used it to take a life!" Aang found himself heated in his own argument, so passionate was he about his own belief he wanted her to see the strength of his convictions and how he could not- would not! - break them.

However, her compliments stopped there. Aang saw the sad glimmer in Yangchen's eyes and he knew he had lost her support.

"Avatar Aang," Yanchen's voice was melancholic and motherly. "I know yours is a gentle spirit; Kiyoshi and I agree on this. The monks taught you well, and for that I am very proud of both them, and of you. But," -how Aang hated when Avatars ended with but- "this isn't about you. This is about saving the world."

"But the monks taught me that I have to detached myself from the world so that my spirit could be free!" Aang countered.

"Many a great and wise Air Nomads have detached themselves and have attained spiritual enlightenment... but the Avatar could never do it."

"Why?" Aang felt finally like he had gotten to the heart of the matter that was bugging him.

"Because your sole duty is to the _world_." Yangchen's words hit the young man like a brick, and Aang practically staggered with the revelation. "I know it isn't fair, Aang, to ask you to choose between your beliefs and your duty - but this has always been our duty, yours and mine. To the world. It has always fallen upon the Avatar to watch over the balance of the Four Nations. And so, here is my wisdom for you: selfless duty calls on you to sacrifice your own spiritual needs, and do whatever it takes, to save the world."

The mist had vaporized. The figure of the Air Nomad woman was gone. Only her lingering words remained.

"Well, I must say that was a fascinating experience. Truly a remarkable young woman... Wouldn't you agree Aang?"

But Guru Pathik's words didn't get through to Aang. Lost in his own world, he felt he knew what he finally needed to do. And he knew that doing it would break him. "I... I guess I don't a choice then. I'm going to have to kill the Fire Lord."


	51. Chapter 51:Calm before the Storm

**Author's note:**

_artyselric: hey guys! long time no see. trombs actually started writing a few weeks ago, but it took me a little while to pick up the slack and correct it. so sorry._

_we know we took a while, but a few good things have happened while we were afk. trombe got two jobs, my parents have almost finished selling their house, and trombe and his sister are still working on getting an apartment. however, despite how busy he is, he's still determined to finish this story._

**Trombe:Zug-Zug**

_artsyelric: i guess you could say the other reason we're willing to get back on the ball is… i guess, it got a little awkward for old friends like trombe and i to write zutara_ as_ zuko and katara. we weren't bad, but we could probably have been better, yeah? well, those of you who've been pm-ing us for a while and know us a bit better won't be surprised to hear it, but we're back with a new passion. because… well, we're dating._

**Trombe: Zug-Zug. But to be on topic. Yes, we are dating. Yes, we are happy. And yes, this story is moving forward. Also just a brief mention the other reason why we are so busy is that we are also starting back up our old shirt printing business which was known as XD Ecksdee productions. We have fan made shirts and apparel of all kind and now we plan to add Avatar to that list. It is still in progress but basically once its up and running we will let you know and if you guys are interested in our stuff our readers are entitled to a discount (Don't you feel just lucky?) plus it'll give us a chance to get to know you guys better when the forum on our website is up too. Just a heads up. Anyway back to the story.  
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**What I don't Like About You**

**Chapter 51: Calm Before The Storm**

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It was a strange thing, the former prince noted, how different people acted differently on the same night. There was camaraderie around the bonfire, and laughter was shared all around. Men jested crudely about the celebration that was to come and the many women who would welcome them as heroes. Others silently prayed to whatever god or spirit they believed would hear their plea. There were also those who remained as unnerved as before, calmly sharpening their swords and spears, grinding the steel, the iron, the whale bone against hard unfeeling flint. The sound the sharpening blades made seemed to echo like a mantra, a soothing melody to calm any warrior's spirit. Yes, it was a good sound. And for a moment the cold night under the banner of the stars provided an air of tranquility.

Zuko, like so many others, had threaded this path before. A serene calm, right before the chaos that is the storm.

And this storm was going to be the storm of the century. The fate of the entire free world depended upon their actions tomorrow. The threat of the next day hung over them like a cloud, the feat they were each to accomplish lay heavy on their hearts, and Zuko contemplated upon how previous Avatars could handle such a responsibility.

How Aang might be handling it alone.

As he passed by along the camp many unfamiliar faces spotted the once scarred prince of the Fire Nation and gave assuring nods and deep glances. And it felt strange to not be ostracized by them. These people acted like they had known who he truly was and did not care for a moment whether he was the legacy of the man who could ruin the entire world.

"Hey Zuko!"

Sokka's now familiar voice beckoned to him, and he spotted the young Water Tribe warrior. He was amongst what looked to be other Water Tribe men, all garbed in the hauntingly alluring white and dark blue of the Order. The boy waved, inviting the prince to join him.

As much as Zuko appreciated the gesture of friendship, there was a small voice in the back of his head that cemented him to the spot. While The Order of the White Lotus had been nothing but an ally to him and his uncle, there was still something about the Water Tribes that made Zuko feel uncomfortable. Of course, with the exception of one beautiful blue eyed bender he could not get out of this mind. She made him feel very comfortable, now a days at least. And he supposed, if he had to, that her older brother could be annoying, but he was an all right fellow too. The rest of them though just seemed so… opposite. So unapproachable.

"C'mere!" The young man gestured wildly with his hand.

Zuko groaned inward. If he left now, it would be a clear snub, so he definitely needed to go over there now, just to appease the guy.

"Hey," he cautiously greeted, climbing awkwardly into the circle of warriors.

"Here try this out!" Sokka grinned mischievously as he pushed a small jug into Zuko's fist, the clay base of it fitting perfectly in his the palm.

"What? What's this?" Zuko glanced at the foreign container which was obviously of Water Tribe origin from the markings and design.

"Just do it! Be a man!"

Sokka pressured the older boy until he basically shoved the beverage down the prince's mouth. That action alone made Zuko roared and insist he could do it himself. With a final glance at the contents, the prince chugged down the unknown liquid from the jug.

Almost immediately he regretted it. A cold sensation surged throughout his throat as if he was frozen. Then almost as suddenly as the cold had come, a scorching heat followed as if he had swallowed the lava of a volcano. Zuko couldn't help but choke and cough violently as Sokka and the men around him enjoyed a laugh or two.

"We call it _uunaqtuq siku," _one of the men spoke out casually. "The burning ice."

"That's… That's a…" Zuko slammed his fist into his chest, hoping to force some form of air into his lungs as he tried to suppress his coughs. "That's a very… appropriate name."

The former prince was no stranger when it came to alcoholic beverages; it was customary for any boy who had reached adulthood, thirteen summers, to drink. It was one of the few vices allowed by the Fire Nation. But whatever it was contained in the jug… it was pure lightning in liquid form.

"We think so too," a different Water Tribe man smiled at him.

"Whoo! Ain't that a rush?" Sokka elbowed him in the rib. "Man, I do miss Water Tribe customs."

"You guys actually drink this on a regular basis?" Zuko inquired.

"Yeah," Sokka agreed, then frowned, considering, which must have been hard if he'd had much more than a gulp or two of the 'burning ice'. "Well, at least on every special occasion. Its one of the first few things that marks a young man of the Water Tribes into adulthood."

"Well, that's something we all share," Zuko muttered.

"What?" Sokka asked, blinking a bit too rapidly.

Zuko rephrased his response. "Isn't your coming of age thing supposed to be, like… ice dodging? Or something? And that survival hunt we were on?" Zuko reminded his bright eyed companion.

"Yep and yep."

His remaining brow drew as he frowned. "You guys sure love tormenting your young, don't you?" Zuko delivered the line in the type of absolute deadpan that always set Sokka off into rolling laughter.

Surprisingly, a few of the older men chortled too.

"I've never heard it put quite that way," an older Water Tribe man smiled. "However there is some merit in that description."

A scared man seemed to agree. "Life on the tundra is harsh. Is it any wonder our aging rituals are too? They breed strength and character. And in the planes of the cold north- or south," he added, with a nod to Sokka and another companion, "-one needs both to survive. The snow spirits have no mercy for the weak willed."

Zuko nodded, reminiscing of the times he had spent with Katara's Southern Tribe family. It made him marvel at the strength and unity that they had shown him anew. "I see," he stated simply, and in a way, he did.

"Of course you see. You have both _uunaqtuq _and _siku_," the oldest man chimed in.

"Huh?" Zuko face fell as he tried to remember the foreign words.

The elder smiled as he explained. "Young man, not one Water Tribe member here has not heard the story of how Prince Zuko chased the Avatar all across our country."

"Across every country, the way I hear it," the man who had told Zuko about burning-ice snickered, and a few men laughed again at that.

The old man grinned briefly, then continued. "You've spent years in Water Tribe territory and have survive all odds despite the harshness of _aput anaana_, mother winter's embrace. Tenacious and fearless. You would have made a fine young man had you had been born Water Tribe."

Zuko shivered, privately glad he hadn't been. He hated the cold. The man's words touched him, even though he knew they weren't deserved, however Zuko's memories of the cold flooded his mind, burring any feelings pride beneath an onslaught of barely controllable fear. Of his first real battle, his invasion of the Southern Tribes village, his flames had placed a glaring fear into the eyes of many Water Tribe women and children, but it was really their ice that frightened him. More than once, he had been sure he would freeze to death, or drown beneath the ice. He felt unable to stop the memories if he didn't say something, and therefore found himself speaking before he thought better of it. "But... But I've done things that I'm not particularly proud of."

"We are not saying we approved of your wayward actions during your frantic chase of the Avatar," the same older gentleman answered sternly. "No. Far from that. You've invaded our homes. You've fought against our people. By every sacred right and law of the Water Tribes you are our enemy..."

"Now guys, let's not go there," Sokka jested nervously, not sure of what to make of the situation.

However, the older men ignored him this time, keeping eyes on Zuko only. "But, we are men of the Order first, and Water Tribe men second."

The scared man grumbled at that, but Sokka glared at him. "White Lotus, smotus," the boy dismissed the elder's declaration, "Zuko is not our enemy." Another man snorted, and Sokka tossed the bottle at him harder than was strictly needed. "Zuko accompanied me on my First Hunt. Well, it wasn't really the first time I went hunting, because the war and all…" He caught himself rambling, his face flushed, and he yanked himself back on track. "But that's not the point. He went with me, and my father, Hakoda, the Blue Wolf, and he had my back. That makes him family, as far as the Southern Tribes are concerned. My brother."

_Brother. _The word stopped Zuko. What would it have been like to have a brother? Probably a lot like it was to be with Sokka, he supposed…

"Your brother in arms," the scared man grunted.

"That's still a brother!" Sokka snapped, and the scarred man looked at him and shrugged.

Zuko reached out and snatched another bottle of the burning drink, and gulped down a whole mouthful. It was all he could think to do. Sokka's inhibitions may have gone out the window with the alcohol, but Zuko could tell the words were true, and they burned somewhere even deeper inside his chest than the drink did.

After a moment, a third man nodded in agreement and took up the elder's meaning, easing the tension out of the air. "Even if we are Water Tribe... The men of our people are wise enough to know honor when they see it, Prince Zuko. You may not be a brother of mine, but I don't believe you are my enemy either. You took neither innocent life nor prisoner. And you were a man of your word. Not all in the Fire Nation were like that."

"Here here!" the scarred man agreed, giving up his stance against Zuko in favor of hating on more vicious foes. "Damn bastards made hateful enemies; couldn't respect them one bit."

"Exactly," the elder resumed his explanation. "You may have fought us, but you did so with honor, Prince Zuko. What more could we have asked of our enemy? You are a son of Fire, and of the olden ways, just like your uncle. You were an enemy we found pride in facing, and there are not many men we could say that about."

Strangely enough the words that these men had spoken gave him more solace than even his recent lack of nightmares had. "Thank you," he practically whispered. "I appreciate that. I truly do." He met not just the eyes of the men in the fire, but Sokka's too, and he held those especially long, until Sokka grinned, and turned away.

After that, he was finally able relax amongst his company. They took turns telling stories of home, many so funny they had everyone in an uproar, even Zuko. The drink, after the initial shock of ingesting it, seemed to add to the merriment. It made it easier to laugh, and harder to be afraid.

It was just after Zuko's third sip of the burning ice, when the world began to take on a comfortable, dreamy haze, that he heard the strangely melodic tune of a sungi horn being played. He was obviously not the only one to catch the brassy tones, as Sokka and the men around him also turned their head towards the music's origins. Almost immediately the responsible culprit was sighted, and Zuko felt a small, unbidden smile lift his lips.

Sitting in the middle of the camp was his uncle, with his favorite instrument, a sungi horn, in tow. He was puffing out a hauntingly beautiful melody, and Zuko's and Sokka's group weren't the only ones to stop talking and take notice. Many more men and women drew quiet to hear the old general play his instrument.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see the figure of Jeong Jeong joining in beside the old grandmaster of the Order with a liuqin in hand. A few strikes upon the stringed instrument and moments later Jeong Jeong played harmoniously with the brass sound of the sungi horn. It wasn't long until Iroh passed on his instrument to another to continue playing as he bellowed out one of his favorite tunes. A familiar, gaudy, yet somehow still lovable song.

_It's a long, long way to Ba Sing Se,_

_But the girls in the city they look so pretty_

_And they kiss so sweet that you've really got to meet..._

_The Girls of Ba Sing Se! _

.

_When you've marched all day to Ba Sing Se,_

_And your clothes are grubby and your feet feeling weary,_

_Who'll bring food so sweet, serve you plates filled with meat..._

_But the Girls of Ba Sing Se!_

.

_Now I've heard them say, down in Ba Sing Se,_

_That when summer's hot all the girls doff their tops!_

_And the sight's so neat that it sunk a passing fleet..._

_Who saw the Girls of Ba Sing Se!_

.

_But Soldier, never stay in Ba Sing Se,_

_For if your plan for life isn't to have a wife_

_Then forsake their bed, or you'll wake up newly wed..._

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When he reached the final line, Iroh paused in the song, placed a hand in his ear, and beckoning for the men around him to join the chorus and finish the line. The result was a roaring:

_TO A GIRL FROM BA SING SE!_

Laughter echoed and cheered from every mouth within earshot of the music. People were telling stories of their own experiences with girls from Ba Sing Se, or elsewhere, and it made Zuko think back to his time spent there. Come to think of it, he had met a girl… _Heh, maybe it was a good thing I didn't stay there too long after all._

After Ba Sing Se, Iroh launched into another song, just as fast and upbeat as the last. It was not long until the proverbial calm before the storm dissipated as many White Lotus Soldiers began to join in on the festivities, scooping up instruments of their own, adding their voices to the song, arguing over the different ways they had learned the words. Here and there men jumped to their feet and danced, every once in a while managing to get one of the women in camp to join them. It was a night to be remembered after all, and Zuko could see the way it spread through the ranks. If a final war with the world's most powerful military awaited them with the dawn, why not enjoy one's self tonight?

Sokka did, as Zuko could plainly see. His goofy friend was already in the middle of the crowd trying his hand at the Sungi horn, desperate to make a sound.

Out of the corner of his eye the former prince spotted Katara laughing cordially with some unfamiliar women. Strangely he felt at ease just watching her, enjoying the way her blue eyes seemed to shine even in the bleak of night.

"It is not often I find my nephew staring so lovingly at a woman." His uncle, ever like the mysterious voice in his head, appeared from the sidelines, walking with the pace of a man who had already seen most of what life offered. "Avidly, yes, but lovingly?" Iroh trailed off suggestively.

"I wasn't staring," Was all the raven haired youth could rebuttal.

"Your words may say so, but your eyes tell a different tale."

"I had completely forgotten how completely annoying you can be sometimes, uncle," Zuko stated, with a hint of biting fondness.

They shared chuckle after a moment, met each other's gaze, and regained their emotions. Poised, controlled, and watchful. A trait forged by Fire Nation nobility. Unbridled passion and feelings were dangerous to firebenders. This was especially true for those with royal blood who were gifted with extraordinary power. Zuko knew it would be even more true the closer the comet got, and the stronger and more wild their bending became.

"Do you want to talk about this?"

"Talk about what?"

"About her. About a certain pair of…" Uncle waggled his eyebrows. "Blue eyes?"

Zuko crossed his arms gruffly. "What's there to talk about?"

"Zuko..."

"Ok, fine." But Zuko didn't continue, and after a moment, he realized he didn't know how. "What do you want me to say?" He just barely resisted the urge to yell it.

His Uncle sighed. "Perhaps you could tell me if you truly care for her?"

"Of course I do!" Zuko protested. "What kind of man would I be if I didn't?"

But Iroh didn't miss a beat. "If you love her?"

Zuko felt his mouth go dry. The first question had just been a build up to this. "I… I don't…" But again, he didn't know how to answer that. Iroh, however, just waited, and eventually, Zuko had to say something. He took a deep breath, and tried. "Have you... have you ever felt so much for someone you were willing to throw everything you had away just to be with them?"

Uncle smiled fondly. "My boy, I was many things in my youth. A lover was one of them. How could I ever forget that feeling? That feeling that made you feel... invincible. Like there was nothing in the world that could harm you, so long as she stood by your side." Zuko looked at Iroh with a renewed sense of respect and awe. And once more he found his eyes tracking Katara. "Though I must say, from personal experience, that I would not recommend throwing everything away for a girl. I almost did, once." Iroh looked at his nephew strictly. "It did not end well."

"A story for another day?" Zuko suggested.

"Oh, and what a story it is!" Iroh agreed heartily. "But we were speaking of you."

"It's just that... I mean... C'mon, Uncle. Look at me." His voice whispered so softly that underneath all the music and the voices it could have been easily drowned if not for the attentiveness of Iroh's ears. "And look at her," Zuko continued with slightly more volume, his own eyes darting upward to gaze at Katara. "How can we be so different? Fire Nation, Water Tribe. Moon. Sun. She fights for her people and the world. We fought only to satisfy our ancestors' greed and glory." The list just seemed to be endless now that Zuko was starting was actually thinking of it.

"You sound as if this is the first time you have considered such things," Iroh commented. "Surely you thought of them… before?"

Zuko shook his head.

"I see."

Iroh paused, and Zuko realized he was listening, much like how a father listened to his son. "When we… started all this, I said… I said not to think about anything else. Tomorrow, or… or anything. Not to think about the war. Or opposites. Or…" he paused. "Or Aang."

"But now you're thinking of it?" Iroh suggested. "It's not spur of the moment for you any longer. Now you have to think of all those things. And one more."

Zuko nodded. "Mai."

They were quiet for a moment before Iroh came to a conclusion. "Does all of that really matter?" His uncle's question left the boy a loss for words. "The fact that you both are so opposite, I mean."

"No. At least… I don't think so."

Uncle had seemed to expect no less. He clapped a hand onto Zuko's shoulder. "You have always had a strong heart, Zuko. Of that I am certain. I think you already know what your answer is."

"But what if I don't? I'm... afraid." Slowly he reiterated, as if discovering for the first time how he really felt, and trying to voice it. "I'm afraid if this is not going to last. Afraid that I... that I could lose her."

This gave Uncle a pause. It was expected, certainly, but Zuko could see Iroh wishing there was another answer he could give, though none seemed to come to him. Finally, he spoke. "If it is meant to be it is meant to be, my boy. That is all the wisdom I can offer you. Love is a fickle mistress, more fickle then any god or spirit. Only time can pry an answer from her."

"Why do you old folks talk that way I mean do you just love messing with me?" Zuko had to contain a hidden snicker, as he had known full well what the answer was going to be.

"Why should we deny you the fun of discovering life for yourself by giving you the answers?" His strange uncle chuckled, and it reminded him of the lessons he had learned from Lo and La on Ember Island.

"By the dragons, I hate this game," Zuko laughed it off. "Speaking of which-"

But before he could bring up the Sun Warriors, the sudden beat of drums erupted in the air, catching both Zuko and Iroh's attentions as it did the rest of the camp. The drums echoed a sweet rhythm, like the primal heart of the elements. A cry of celebration flourished from the crowd. From its core formed a shape, as Water Tribe men and women began to coordinate a movement, mirroring each other much like how a shadow mirrors a man. It was hypnotic, strange, and intriguing to watch. The men's form were close to the ground. Their movements primal and almost as if they walked on all fours. The women on the other hand made movements that resembled something that struck Zuko as peculiar and familiar. The wide and slow exaggerated gestures of the arms, the calm and steady breathing, the empty stance of the legs gave Zuko all that he needed to remember where he saw those forms.

Waterbending.

"What's this now?" His golden eyes were fixed on the dance, and Zuko felt he could not look away.

"My, oh my, A ceremonial dance of the Water Tribes. I have not seen one in decades." Iroh may have sounded the cultured old prince he really was, but he was right, never the less. " Here comes the warriors, proud and true. Look how primal they move, how tense the muscles become," Iroh noted out loud, and Zuko knew the commentary was for his sake.

Iroh's words guided him through their dance. The prince amazed by studying the new routine. Dances in the Fire Nation Empire were purely symbolic, gestures done only because it was decreed of them by duty. The ones that had been breaking out across camp the rest of the evening were sporadic, unplanned, simplistic. This was something else entirely, almost alien-like.

"Why are they doing this?" Zuko's voice escaped from his throat unconsciously.

"For war, for peace, for joy. Its a dance that could mean many things," the old Lotus grandmaster commented.

"It is a precursor dance to a tale that we of the Water Tribe enjoy, boy." The silhouette of Master Pakku walked casually to their side, amused by how fascinated the prince seemed to be of the spectacle. "The warriors move with grace and strength to honor the spirit that lends them his power and courage. To beg the blessing of the Warrior."

The prince fell silent for a moment before the image popped into his head. "The wolf."

"So there is a mind behind all that hair, " Pakku snickered. "Yes the wolf. A creature that is both cunning, strong, ferocious, and deadly. But none so fierce as the father of all wolves, Winter Wolf. The ultimate Warrior of the Tundra."

Myths and stories once had a place in Zuko's heart when he was just a child, but they left no existence in his pragmatic mind now. He wondered now, as he was compelled to listen to this tale, if that had been an oversight.

Pakku's story began on the downbeat of the lion-seal skin drum, and moved along with the dancers, his voice weaving through the beat like the dancer's bodies, both carrying the story. "Long, long ago when the ice covered the entire lands and the Water Tribes were of one single Tribe, there was a spirit who roamed the lands. A giant white wolf with eyes as blue as the sea. This spirit ruled the icelands with no fear of others, for who would he fear when he was the strongest, the fastest, and the fiercest? He ate whatever he wanted, took what he wanted. He was a greedy spirit. He was an angry spirit. And he plagued my people to no end. He was called Winter Wolf because he was as cold and as ruthless as the unforgiving snow."

"Didn't your people fight back?" Zuko questioned with a child like curiosity.

"Fight a spirit? Don't be foolish boy. How would you fight the elements themselves? But," Pakku sighed, and attempted to find his place again. "Of course they did, or tried to. Foolish as they were, my people are a proud lot. And no spirit was going to terrorize them. But whenever they caught him with spears and swords the wolf would vanish in a blizzard. When they tried to net him, Winter Wolf's claws and fangs would tear through their strongest rope with ease. It seemed that the wolf spirit would remain unchallenged. Fearing the worst, our old shamans and wise men prayed to mother moon to deliver unto them protection against Winter. And so she showed them the ocean. The ebbs and flow of the waves, how strong they would move the ice and how nothing stood in their path. The people of the Water Tribe watched until finally a young girl learned the secret- she learned how to move the ocean, and wield all its power."

"Waterbending," Zuko exclaimed slowly to himself.

"Well according to our legend, yes. One day, as Winter wolf prepared to attack the village once more so he could take what wanted, this child stood up to him in all her diminutive stature."

"So she won?"

"Sadly, no," Pakku replied with no hesitation. "No matter what anyone says, she was but a mortal child and he a mighty spirit. He took her life like he had taken so many others."

"What a beast," Iroh commented and Zuko found himself agreeing with his uncle.

"Here is where the story gets interesting. As the wolf slew the girl he could not find himself to devour her body. He found himself strangely held in place, as if something held him there. It was said that he felt remorse, guilt. Personally I don't really think he felt anything. But the story goes that Winter Wolf, in all his cruel form felt the cry of mother moon and he was ashamed at his deed. And so he mourned the only way he knew how. He howled. Long and sad." Pakku paused a moment, as if to share the grief the great beast felt. Zuko noticed the dancers motions, many inspired by fighting, by waterbending, and indeed, by the howls of the wolf. "With the girl's death however... came a startling revelation. Winter Wolf, it would seem - if you pardon the pun - had turned over a new coat. The once dreaded invader had become our people's fierce protector. He defended the Water Tribes from all her enemies, both ethereal and mortal. And with his strength came a time of peace. A piece that lasted generations."

"What happened next?" Zuko figured that couldn't be the end of the story.

"Who knows, boy. It's an old story. Some say he left this world to go run and hunt in the spirit world. Others say he is the Avatar reincarnated. And then there are those who believe he still lingers in this world, repenting for his crime by continuing to watch over the Water Tribes. Wherever he is it is said that it his absence that is the reason why wolves howl now, to mourn the loss of their first brother." The waterbending master coughed abruptly. "Bah, I am getting old. I'm telling wives tales like Bumi. Anyway, it looks like the ceremonial dance is over. Enjoy yourself while the night last. Prince Zuko, Iroh." With that, and the end of the dance, the sarcastic master took his leave.

"Fascinating story, wouldn't you say nephew?" Iroh stroked his beard in satisfaction.

"Yeah... Yeah it is."

"That was always one of my favorite things about traveling the four nations," Iroh admitted. "Learning all the stories."

"I know," Zuko admitted. "And actually, I kind of understand why now."

Iroh smiled.

The prince felt strangely at ease, as if he could finally let his worries disappear for the night. With resolve firmly in hand he glanced at his uncle with a new found vigor.

"If you will excuse me uncle, I've got something I have to do."

He walked with a confident pace, making his way into the crowd until finally he was in front of her. The women who were with Katara must have gotten the hint as they smiled mischievously and excused themselves from them.

"Dance with me."

"What?" Katara looked at Zuko as if he had lost his mind.

"Dance with me, Katara," he repeated.

"Here? Now?"

"There's music. There's dancing. So yes. Here. Now."

"Um..."

He lent out his open palm as if he was offering his soul. "Please?"

"...Okay." Her eyes sparkled a blue that dwarfed the bluest ocean and his heart skipped a beat.

But of course, men are easily caught in the moment. And once they returned to reality, they often find themselves in situations where they've bit off a bit more than they can chew.

That kind of moment, was now.

The two stared at each other awkwardly, each as if anticipating the movement of the other.

"Uh... What now?" Zuko asked causing Katara to laugh.

"I don't know, you asked me to dance!" She couldn't contain a laugh.

"I'm not much of a dancer actually... to be honest I don't think I even know how," Zuko admitted sheepishly, feeling foolish at the fleeting bravado he had displayed earlier. Katara felt no shortage of amusement at his awkwardness as she continued to laugh. It was a laugh the two shared at the moment, though. Zuko no longer harbored a fear of laughing at himself, at least, not with her. "I just mean, I've never even seen dances like… like this." He gestured behind him at the frivolity, at all the dancers moving free form.

"Zuko... Why'd you ask me to dance if you don't know how?" she asked, an amused smile gracing her gentle face.

"I don't know... I just felt like I needed to live in the moment."

A pause. Katara's eyes seemed far away for a moment. Then her features set, and she spoke. "Spar with me."

"What?"

"Your firebending and my waterbending. Spar with me like how we usually do. I wasn't a great dancer before, I may not be now, but someone showed me once that our bending, our martial styles, are like a dance. So... with that in mind… let's dance?"

Stunned at her answer, it took a few moments before what she said finally sunk in and he replied with a grin and an, "Okay."

He held his hand out again, and this time, hers went into it. They smiled. And then she flung it away.

They danced.

One a prince. The other a peasant. One of the Fire Nation. The other of the Water Tribes. He, with eyes of the golden dragon. She, whose eyes mirrored the sea. Their movements were mesmerizing to behold, his bold, striking, powerful, her smooth, flowing and graceful. Whenever Katara spun around to weave her ribbons of water, they would meet Zuko's wild fire as he spun a kick that smoldered bright orange flames that illuminated the sky. Over and over again the two spun around each other, creating a duels circle. An open palm strike came from Katara, Water spinning around her arms which Zuko answered by deflecting her blow with a cartwheel kick, guiding her palm strike harmlessly into the air, as the spiral of water joined flame, creating a lovely vortex of orange and water droplets to the eruption of applause from the watching crowds.

There was no time in the dance, just as there was no aggression. They weren't waiting to see when they'd fall apart, or be discovered. It did not even dwell in their thoughts that everyone was watching. They were thinking of anything at all, but each other. It was what they did best, Zuko and Katara, the only way they could be together, in a single moment where they didn't think. They just were.

Pure joy was on both bender's face as they laughed while they fought. Their moment, suspended like a crack between two stories, caught. Revelry spread across the camp, across every person of every nation, for whom there might not be any more tomorrows. For whom, in this single, stolen moment, might find a final freedom, a last joy, or a moment of peace.

For one night, this night, there was no White Lotus. There was no Fire Nation. There was not even a tomorrow. There were only people who were in celebration. And in the middle of those people were a boy and a girl, lost in their own world.


End file.
